On 11th February 2023, the UFC will make history as its #1 and #2 ranked pound-for-pound fighters go head to head. Featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski will move up in weight to take on Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in what is one of the most important fights in promotional history.
Whilst both of these fighters share attributes befitting great champions, their respective journeys to the pinnacle of the sport could not have been more different.
On one hand is Makhachev. An irresistible grappling phenom, forged in the gritty and volatile mountains of Dagestan, and groomed under the tutelage of the late Abdulnal Nurmagomedov. Preordained since his UFC debut as the champion in waiting, the heir apparent to Makhachev’s mentor and training partner, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
On the other hand is Alexander Volkanovski. Unlike Makhachev, he was not born into a deeply ingrained culture of combat sports. He did wrestle as a child, winning Australian titles, however it was a niche sport in Australia and before long Volkanovski was pursuing a far more Aussie pastime – Rugby League.
It was in this sport that Volkanovski grew up and excelled at at a semi-professional level, and he even earned recognition that might have seen him ultimately play at the highest level. However, what began as an effort to keep fit in the off-season, quickly turned into something more. At the age of 23 years old, Volkanovski took a risk that would change the course of sporting history and walked away from Rugby League to pursue a career in MMA.
A Great Australian
The significance of Volkanovski’s achievements to date should not be overlooked. He’s by any reasonable measure, Australia’s greatest ever combat sports athlete. Should he topple Islam Makhachev on Sunday, he enters the pantheon of all-time sporting greats alongside the likes of Sir Don Bradman, Cathy Freeman, Rod Laver, and Ian Thorpe.
Sporting success is not unusual to Australia. The country punches above its weight in just about anything it turns its hand to. Cricket, Swimming, Tennis, Athletics, and Rugby are all staples of the sporting calendar, bringing continual success and glory to the country.
However, there have not been too many world class combat sports athletes. Kostya Tszyu’s achievements were impressive, but his defeat to Ricky Hatton left questions about his place in the world at that time and at that weight. Jeff Fenech is a legend in his own right, as a four-weight world champion. But, and perhaps it is recency bias, becoming just the fifth fighter ever to simultaneously hold titles in two UFC divisions would trump their accomplishments.
Alexander Volkanovski has changed things for Australian MMA, and a win over Islam Makhachev would cement his legacy as its most important fighter ever. It would also put him squarely in the conversation as one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time, such is the magnitude of the challenge before him.
So how did a concreter from Wollongong become the #1 pound-for-pound fighter on the planet?
The Journey
Whilst ‘Volk’ is now the man at 145 pounds, his MMA career as an amateur began at middleweight as he was shedding his Rugby League bulk. Over the next four years, he would dominate the regional scene amassing a record of 13-1 with wins at welterweight, lightweight, and featherweight. His most impressive win came over a young Jamie Mullarkey, handing him his first loss by way of a vicious KO.
In 2016, Volkanovski made his UFC debut at lightweight with a stoppage win over Yasuke Kasuya. From here, he would drop down to featherweight and begin his 11 fight winning streak at 145 pounds which includes wins over former interim champion Chad Mendes, and former champion and Hall of Famer Jose Aldo. These impressive victories, both times as a betting underdog, would earn him a shot at Max Holloway’s title.
Capturing the Belt
In their first of three encounters, Volkanovski put on an impressive performance to win by unanimous decision, upsetting the odds once again, to dethrone Max Holloway. The UFC made an immediate rematch, and this time the fight was much closer. Volkanovski retained the belt via split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47), which quickly became one of the most debated scorecards of the year.
Many fans believed that Max was the worthy winner, as well as UFC President Dana White, and two thirds of the MMA media who submitted scorecards.
As a result of this controversy it took until 2022, three years after first winning the belt, for Volkanovski’s greatness as a champion to be truly appreciated. His performances against Brian Ortega and Chang Sung Jung showed the levels to which his MMA game had ascended, and the depths to which he was willing to go to retain his title.
Legacy
The third fight between Volkanovski and Holloway would define their legacies. It would decide the best featherweight of this era. Volkanovski was finally being appreciated, and Holloway was still considered to be at the top of his game with wins over Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodriguez. However, he was powerless against this latest iteration of Volkanovski, who proved that once and for all he had transcended all featherweights before him. His performance was flawless, earning him a 50-45 decision on all three judges’ scorecards.
The performance conclusively and decisively closed the final chapter on what had once been a competitive rivalry.
Now, six years and three months after his UFC debut at 155 pounds, Volkanovski returns to the division with a view of making history. Whether he achieves his goal of double-champ status this weekend or not, he will likely continue to rule over the featherweight division for the foreseeable future, cementing his legacy as Australia’s greatest fighter of all time.
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Featured Image Credits to Embed from Getty Images
