Though it was a fight he’d already won once, Alexander Volkanovski put his recently-won UFC featherweight championship on the line for a rematch with Diego Lopes atop the UFC 325 card that took place on Saturday, the 31st of January inside the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney.
He had said in the build-up that he was eyeing other opponents but, after what he did this weekend, he’ll perhaps have been glad to have taken on Lopes again because, in truth, it was a masterclass.
In the first fight, last year, Volkanovski’s win over Lopes put a halt to a two-fight skid, having lost back-to-back bouts against Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria, both of whom defeated him by knockout. But, in Australia, he showed he was, once again, too strong, too tough, and too good for Lopes, beating him, this time, with scores of 50-45 and 49-46 (twice).
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Alexander Volkanovski Beats Diego Lopes
After a tentative opening round, Volkanovski almost secured a finish in the second, when he jumped onto a guillotine that Lopes was fortunate to have escaped from. In the third, Volkanovski wobbled Lopes with a counter right, and started loading up on head-shots to try and score more damage — one of the greatest ways to earn a winning round on a judges card.
Though there was an argument for Volkanovski to have swept the scores, Lopes had his own moments, catching him with a right hook, and dropping him in the third, perhaps even winning the fourth, but Volkanovski finished like a champion, shrugged off the challenger’s guillotine, and finishes the round by smashing punches into his face.
What made Volkanovski’s win impressive, wasn’t just the return to form, but that he’s now tied with Jose Aldo for the most featherweight title defenses in UFC history, staking his own claim as the division’s GOAT.
Earlier on the card, Benoit Saint-Denis battered and bloodied Dan Hooker for a second-round knockout, Tallison Teixeira topped Tai Tuivasa over three rounds at heavyweight, and Mauricio Ruffy annihilated Rafael Fiziev before calling out Conor McGregor and Paddy Pimblett.
UFC returns to Las Vegas for a Fight Night branded event on the 7th of February,
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