Alexander Volkanovski is nearing the end of his hall of fame MMA career and wants to retire from UFC in the most spectacular way possible. That’s why “The Great” has set his sights on a championship super fight against current 155-pound kingpin Justin Gaethje for early to mid 2027.
But if “The Highlight” calls it quits, it might be the perfect opportunity for Volkanovski to avenge his 2024 loss to Ilia Topuria.
“If it was going to be for a lightweight title, that’d be great, because I get that win
back as well,” Volkanovski told Brendan Bradford. “Gaethje took that zero, so I can’t say that I get the chance to take that zero from him, but to get that win back would be great. Nothing against him obviously, he’s a great fighter, great dude, we get along well.”
“But at the same time, I’m a competitor, and I would love to test myself against him,” Volkanovski continued. “How that would work probably doesn’t make sense. If Gaethje does retire, maybe I can find someone. Win, lose, or draw I retire, so I’m not holding the division up. That’ll be something very exciting. And I think everyone should be on board on that.”
Topuria lost the lightweight title (and his undefeated record) to Gaethje at UFC White House last June.
Volkanovski (29-4) is coming off a technical knockout victory over Movsar Evloev in the main event of UFC 333 last weekend in Abu Dhabi, his third straight win since falling to Topuria. UFC CEO Dana White is on board with whatever the Aussie wants to do next, it’s just a matter of finding a willing opponent.
