“Drago” is ready to show off his entire skillset.
No. 2-ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight Alexander Volkov collides with No. 5-ranked Jailton Almeida on the UFC 321 main card this
weekend (Sat., Oct. 25, 2025) inside Etihad Arena on “Fight Island” in Abu Dhabi — in a pivotal matchup for the Heavyweight division.
On paper, Volkov vs. Almeida is a classic striker vs. grappler showdown — Almeida brings a world-class ground game, while Volkov is one of the division’s most polished strikers. Still, don’t expect “Drago” to shy away from grappling exchanges. He’s actually looking forward to proving how well-rounded he’s become.
““His style is pretty understandable to me. He doesn’t hide it,” Volkov told UFC.com. “He’s going to do his jiu-jitsu, ground and wrestling game, that’s it. So I’ve prepared for this. It’s a good opportunity for me to show my ground and wrestling skills. I like that he gave me this opportunity to train my grappling more. It’s a great opportunity to show the world that I have good wrestling and jiu-jitsu too.”
While Volkov is best known for his knockout power, he’s no stranger to submissions — boasting four career wins by tapout, including a rare Ezekiel choke over Tai Tuivasa (watch highlights). Still, with 24 knockouts on his resume, Volkov believes this one ends the way most of his fights do — violently.
“I think there is a big chance to knock him out,” Volkov said. “I feel like I’ll have a lot of opportunities for this. But whatever happens will happen — it’s a fight, it’s Heavyweight. But there will be a lot of chances to knock him out.”
Volkov knows that a win could set up a rematch with UFC Heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall, who headlines the same card in Abu Dhabi.
The 38-year-old Russian is coming off a controversial robbery loss to Ciryl Gane last December, which snapped his four-fight win streak that included three impressive finishes.
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