UFC featherweight champ, Alexander Volkanovski is set to defend his belt against Brian Ortega this summer. However, many believe a trilogy fight with Max Holloway should be on the cards at some point in the near future.
‘The Great’ vs. ‘Blessed’ 3
In a recent interview with The Schmo, Volkanovski discussed the current landscape of the 145lb division. The champ seems entirely focused on his immediate opponent in Brian Ortega. However, he was certainly not averse to facing Holloway a third time. He stated the following:
“I’ve been saying this plenty of times. But again, right now I’ve got Ortega to worry about. He’s got my full focus. But at the same time, do I think the Max fight will ever happen? Yeah, probably. It’s such a big fight, it’s always gonna be there. Everyone wants to see it so let’s make that money. Make it happen eventually. But right now Ortega’s first. And he’s got my full focus. But we’ll see what happens after that.”
A Rising Contender?
However, Volkanovski is staying aware of the whole 145lb division, not just the Holloways and Ortegas. 10th ranked Arnold Allen recently defeated 11th ranked Sodiq Yusuff, and will likely be matched up with one of the divisions top 10 ranked fighters next. Volk had the following to say about this rising prospect:
“As always, I’ve always got my eye on all the contenders. So everyone in the featherweight division. I’m always doing my fight studying and you know, I’ve got my eye on every single one because you never know who your gonna face. Especially these guys. Obviously, both undefeated (in the UFC) going into that fight. Yeah good fight, high level. Arnold Allen getting the win. Again I think he’s up there with the most win streak in our division. I think I’m nine but because I’ve got the catchweight and the lightweight debut it only says seven at the moment. But we gotta fix that. I’m on a nine-fight win streak.
Volkanovski will coach the latest season of The Ultimate Fighter opposite Brian Ortega. The season will culminate with a fight between two elite featherweights.
