Behind the scenes! Volkanovski reveals the drama experienced by Mauricio Ruffy before UFC 325: 'Much respect for him'

Alexander Volkanovsky Mauricio Ruffy at the gym. Photo: Reproduction/X

Alexander Volkanovsky e Mauricio Ruffy They've been living in close proximity in recent months due to both of their camps for the UFC 325, which took place last Saturday (31), in Sydney, Australia. The good relationship between the two ended up generating access to more privileged information, the kind that can compromise an athlete's performance. After the Brazilian's victory, the Australian revealed a situation that was totally restricted until then.

During the post-UFC 325The current featherweight champion (up to 65,7 kg) spoke about various topics, and among them, 'The Great' commented on Ruffy's pre-fight preparation and how he came to admire the Brazilian even more for his effort in reaching the ideal weight for the fight against... Raphael FizievIn addition to dealing with a severe case of the flu days before his fight in the octagon.

"I'll tell you something. We were lucky that he (Mauricio Ruffy(I wish you had shown up this week if you knew half of what he went through. He caught a really bad case of the flu at the beginning of the week, with very high fevers. I didn't even think he'd be able to make weight, so we had to give him all the psychological support he needed to get through it.)

He even had great difficulties today and couldn't move, but we told him he needed to focus mentally. He persevered and did what he knows how to do against someone like Rafa (Fiziev). Incredible, man. Much respect for him just for showing up tonight,” he said. Alexander Volkanovsky at the post-college press conferenceUFC 325 about the Brazilian.

Alexander Volkanovsky product reveals Mauricio Ruffy battled a serious flu and fight-day complications before stepping into #UFC325

"I'll tell you something. We're lucky he even turned up this week if you knew half the stuff he went through. He had legit Influenza A at the start of the… pic.twitter.com/lpqy1fLlRr

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) February 1, 2026

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It's worth remembering that shortly after Alexander Volkanovsky to detail the challenges that Mauricio Ruffy It went on until he stepped into the octagon against Raphael Fiziev, The Fighting Nerds athlete also went into more detail about the ordeal he went through in an interview..

Check out the results of UFC 325

MAIN CARD

Featherweight (up to 65,7 kg): Alexander Volkanovsky derrotou Diego lopes by unanimous decision of the judges (49-46, 49-46, 50-45) – Championship fight

Light weight (up to 70,3 kg): Benoit Saint-Denis derrotou Dan Hooker by technical knockout (punches and elbows) at 4:45 of round 2

Light weight (up to 70,3 kg): Mauricio Ruffy derrotou Raphael Fiziev by technical knockout (punches) at 4min30sec of R2

Heavy weight (up to 120,2 kg.): Tallison Teixeira derrotou Tai tuivasa by unanimous decision of the judges (28-29, 28-29, 28-29)

Light weight (up to 70,3 kg): Quillan Salkilld derrotou Jamie Mullarkey by submission (rear naked choke) at 3min01sec of R1

PRELIMINARY CARD

Light heavyweight (up to 93 kg): Billy Elekana derrotou Junior Tafa by submission (rear naked choke) at 3min18sec of R2

Middleweight (up to 83,9 kg): Cam Rowston defeated Cody Brundage by technical knockout (punches) at 4min08sec of R2

Average weight (up to 83,9 kg): Jacob Malkoun derrotou Torrez Finney by unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)

Welterweight (up to 77 kg.): Jonathan Micallef derrotou Oban Elliott by submission (rear naked choke) at 3min31sec of R2

Featherweight (up to 65,7 kg): Kaan Ofli derrotou Yi Zha by majority decision of the judges (29-28, 29-28, 28-28)

Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Dom Mar Fan defeated SangWook Kim by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Featherweight (up to 65,7 kg): Keiichiro Nakamura defeated Sebastian Szalay by technical knockout (knee strike) at 3:38 of round 3.

Bantamweight (up to 61,2 kg): Lawrence Lui defeated Sulangrangbo by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)