Alexander Volkanovski doesn’t get talked about enough when it comes to wrestling. And honestly, that’s kind of wild. Just look at what he did to Yair Rodriguez—not only did he shut down the guy’s flashy striking, but he basically rag-dolled him with takedowns. It wasn’t even close. Now, sure, dominating a striker is one thing. But stepping in there with someone like Islam Makhachev? Whole different dimension! The lightweight champ is right there next to Khabib in terms of grappling prowess. Still, the former featherweight champ didn’t get steamrolled. He fought back, scrambled, and stayed in the fight. That’s not possible without having big chops. 

Volkanovski got into Greco-Roman wrestling when he was just a kid, and by the time he hit 12, he’d already snagged two national titles. But then, just a couple of years later, around 14, he made a pretty surprising move. He walked away from wrestling and decided to give rugby league a shot instead. He played as a front-rower, which is no joke. It’s a brutal position, but it suited him; he was tough, stocky, and explosive. Like many, the first BMF champion Jorge Masvidal couldn’t fathom this fact when he met ‘The Great’ for the first time. 

‘Gamebred’ at the Main Event podcast said, “I saw Volk fight live in Australia 11 years ago something like that, 10 years ago, 8 years? Long time, so long that I don’t remember exactly. I remember watching him beat the c**p out of this guy, but his wrestling wasn’t so fluent. I remember that was a good fight and at some point later on, I bumped into him. We were at the thing after the fight and I started talking to him.”

Continuing further, he marveled: “And I was like, ‘Brother wow man I have never seen an Australian that could wrestle. Then I told him just like, ‘Dude you got good wrestling man! You wresting background?’ he said , ‘No Mate!’ I was like, ‘Cool!’, he was very like, ‘Nah’, I was like what’s your background? He said, ‘MMA and some Rugby’ I was like, ‘Whatever bro, sure thing.”

You don’t become the best 145er in the world just by being good at one thing. With Volkanovski, it’s not just talent it’s how everything he did before fighting actually helped shape the fighter he became. The wrestling, the rugby, all of it wasn’t random. It gave him power, balance, and toughness most guys just don’t have. And honestly, the way he’s made all of that work inside the cage just shows how good he is. He didn’t just show up and start winning. He worked for it, stayed patient, and kept improving.

So the Great’s career might’ve hit a bit of a rough patch lately, but let’s be real he’s still got everything it takes to bounce back. At UFC 314, he’s headlining against Diego Lopes, and it’s his shot to get that featherweight belt back. After Ilia Topuria showed that even Volkanovski could be knocked out, a lot of eyes are on this one. In the same appearance, Jorge Masvidal also brought out how Lopes could be a real problem and it’s not going to be easy.

Jorge Masvidal breaks the threat of Diego Lopes for Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 314

Diego Lopes is a menace, especially in those first couple of rounds his hands are fast and powerful. He’s got the kind of striking that can shut the lights out in a second. That’s why Volkanovski needs to be smart going into this one. He can’t rush it. He’s got to ease into the fight, pick his shots, and avoid hanging around in the pocket for too long. If those wild hooks from Lopes land clean, he could be in big trouble. So Volkanovski’s best move is to control the pace, stay on the outside, and drag this fight into deeper waters where his experience can take over.

Jorge Masvidal being an elite striker himself understands this completely: Diego Lopes’ threat goes down considerably after the initial rounds. Then the former champion can establish his dominion basically using his grappling.

Continuing the conversation with Main Event podcast, Masvidal said, “So, Volk is one of my favorite fighters, that being said he has no easy task coming up this Saturday. That’s gonna be a tough one you know. Diego in those first two rounds will be full bull young, considerably bigger. But he doesn’t have the same skillset and the same experience obviously as Volk, so it’s still a very exciting fight. So, I kind of this guy can get to Volk in the first two rounds, it could be very good for him. But, I see once it gets out of the first two rounds, the guy’s chances start to drop because Volk is so good everywhere.”

Can Alexander Volkanovski become the two-time featherweight champion? Please comment your thoughts below.