Islam makhachev (right) and Alexander Volkanovsky (left) had revenge on UFC 294. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram
Almost two years after being knocked out by Islam makhachev No. UFC 294, Alexander Volkanovsky confessed to regretting some decisions made before stepping into the Octagon with the Russian for the second time. In fact, the Australian acknowledged that the circumstances under which the fight was accepted, combined with the way he approached it, resulted in one of the most traumatic defeats of his professional fighting career.
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The featherweight champion (up to 65,7 kg) spoke about the subject in an interview with the program 'The Unscripted Show' last Tuesday (2). According to him, having accepted the fight with just a few days' notice made him believe that he would be a more aggressive opponent for his opponent.
"I told myself I'd be more dangerous because I took the fight on short notice. I believed it. I didn't think I'd win a decision against Islam with 11 days' notice, so I need to end this quickly," Volkanovski said, recalling his mindset for the fight.
Alexander Volkanovsky believed short notice would make him more dangerous against Islam
“I told myself I'm gonna be more dangerous because of the short notice. I believed that. I ain't going to win a decision against Islam on 11 days' notice, so I've to get the finish.”
(Street… pic.twitter.com/LyBbfOYCAG
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) September 3, 2025
At the time, the Australian was recovering from simple elbow surgery when he received the call from the UFC after Charles of the Bronx suffer a cut on his eyebrow during training. He had successfully defended his belt by knocking out Yair Rodriguez in his previous commitment and was looking for a new opportunity to share the octagon with Makhachev after the two fought an intense duel in February 2023.
Volkanovski was knocked out in the first round
Islam makhachev overcame Alexander Volkanovsky No. UFC 294. Photo: Reproduction/Twitter/@UFC
While the first bout saw both fighters push themselves to their physical limits, with the Russian prevailing by unanimous decision, the rematch saw a very different outcome. In the first round, Makhachev landed a precise left-handed high kick to the Australian's head, forcing referee Marc Goddard to stop the fight in what turned out to be the second successful title defense for the longest-reigning lightweight champion (up to 70,3 kg) in history.
Just three months later, Volkanovski returned to the octagon to defend his title against Ilia Topuria and once again the result was not what was expected. He was knocked down by a strong punch from the Georgian/Spanish fighter and ended up brutally knocked out in the second round.
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