Alexander Volkanovski added to his resume as arguably the greatest featherweight of all time with an even more dominant performance to beat Diego Lopes for a second time in the UFC 325 main event.
The 37-year-old champion showed patience, incredible movement and a powerful counter striking game that gave Lopes headaches from the first second until the last. While Lopes actually had some moments in the first encounter, Volkanovski effectively shut him down in the rematch and showed why he is a two-time
champion with eight total title defenses on his record.
When it was over, the judges scored the contest 50-45, 49-46 and 49-46 with Volkanovski getting the nod and a second straight victory over Lopes.
“It ain’t getting any easier,” Volkanovski joked after the win. “Camp was a lot of things going on in there. We pushed through. Sometimes things go wrong but I’m like let’s go, that’s more of a challenge. It fires me up even more. I didn’t want to stand for 25 minutes, I’ll be honest. But we got the job done so it’s all good.”
“We’re ready for him to make the right adjustments. Our last fight, we moved to the right and we did a good job cutting that off straight away. I make the adjustments. That’s what makes a true champion. You’ve got guys that are talented, they’ve got all this stuff. But it’s all the stuff, everyone that has the grit, the determination, hard work, sacrifice, make the adjustments on the fly, stay composed in the fire. I’ve got them all.”
For his part, Lopes was understandably dejected after coming up short in his second attempt at dethroning Volkanovski, which likely puts him out of the title chase as long as the Australian remains champion.
“I think Volkanovski is one of the best guys in the division, he makes a lot of things in round by round,” Lopes said. “Step by step he make different things. I do not have a lot of words for this moment.”
It was another masterclass from Volkanovski as he kept Lopes guessing and showed off his superior skills throughout the five round fight.
Staying at kicking range throughout the opening round, Volkanovski was content swiping away at Lopes from the outside and making the challenger chase him. As Lopes tried to find an opening, Volkanovski uncorked a beautiful combination including a stiff right hand that connected flush.
With Lopes determined to stay aggressive, he started pursuing Volkanovski with a bit more reckless abandon but that also left him open for some slick counters. For every punch Lopes was landing, Volkanovski was just as quick to fire back with two or three of his own.
A time ticked away, Lopes went for a takedown and Volkanovski quickly countered with a guillotine choke, although he slipped free before he could secure the submission.
On the restart, Volkanoski was keeping Lopes guessing until he forced the challenger to surge forward with a barrage of punches. That allowed Volkanovski to counter perfectly as he blasted Lopes with a stiff right hand.
A second later with Lopes rushing forward, Volkanovski snapped off another punishing right hand that buckled his opponent’s legs momentarily. Lopes recovered effectively and he finally connected with a shot of his own that wobbled Volkanovski, although the champion wasted no time getting right back in his face as the action continued.
Volkanovski was frustrating Lopes with good movement and superior footwork, never allowing himself to get trapped in a bad spot. Every time Lopes exploded forward, Volkanovski was making him pay with well-timed counters that were always finding a home on the chin.
It wasn’t until Lopes threw caution to the wind and just forced Volkanovski into a fire fight that he landed some solid shots of his own. But even then, Volkanovski was dishing out plenty of punishment of his own and never allowing Lopes to gain any real momentum.
With five minutes remaining, Lopes’ coaches urged him to go for broke, realizing that he likely needed a finish to win the fight. But Volkanovski wasn’t giving an inch, still mixing his combinations and even throwing a takedown to keep Lopes guessing.
When Lopes got a little too aggressive, Volkanovski made him pay with a powerful lead jab that snapped off with power and precision. Even when Lopes managed to draw him into a grappling exchange, looking for a kimura and then an arm bar, Volkanovki was quick to defend and counter before ending up on top.
Volkanovski closed the fight with a few more punches on the ground but the die was already cast — he was winning and holding onto his featherweight title for another successful defense.
While this rematch made little sense on paper, Volkanovski proved he’s just the better fighter going against Lopes and now he’s awaiting some new competition from the featherweight division.
“Obviously, I made it clear whoever’s next is next, whoever deserves it,” Volkanovski said. “I think they might be doing Movsar [Evloev] and Lerone Murphy, we’ll see if that happens. I’ll talk to the team and just see what’s next.”
