Have You All Forgotten Who You're Dealing With?

It’s been a hot minute, folks.

But I’m back and (hopefully) not too much of a nuisance in your undoubtedly crowded inboxes.

I won’t beat around the bush. Since the last time you heard from me…

• The UFC middleweight belt has once again changed hands

• Bellator and the PFL have announced a genuinely exciting crossover event

• While yours truly had the distinct privilege of speaking to All-Australian battlers Alexander Volkanovski and Robert Whittaker right before they jetted off to the US for UFC 298

Let’s get into it, shall we?

Have You All Forgotten
Who TF We’re Dealing With Here?

I think no other sport is plagued with greater recency bias than mixed martial arts.

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that a single, lifespan-shortening loss can indeed alter an athlete’s competitive trajectory.

Perhaps there’s some undiscovered phenomenon wherein regularly watching blokes give each other CTE can also have an impact on the viewer’s memory.

Whatever the case: I watched fans downsize the enormous legacy of Jose Aldo post-UFC 194 and I’ll be damned if I let it happen to Alexander Volkanovski ahead of his title defence against Ilia Topuria.

Yes, Volk is now 1-2 over the past year — the most recent defeat coming by way of a nasty first-round knockout at the hands of career rival Islam Makhachev (I’m not going to harp on about stepping up on two weeks’ notice but nor will I dismiss it as a key factor).

Yes, the undefeated Topuria, the #3 featherweight division contender, is a heavy-handed boxer who complements his devastating striking ability with bona fide submission skills (finishing 12/14 professional fights) — some are hailing him as the division’s new boogeyman.

And alright, yes. Historically speaking, when it comes to UFC featherweight championship bouts (interim or undisputed), the younger fighter is 15-6. But do you know who prevailed in five of those six instances wherein an older fighter had his hand raised?

Alexander f**king Volkanovski.

From Max Holloway (x3) to the aforementioned Jose Aldo, this is a man who beat the brakes off the featherweight division’s greatest names throughout a near-unprecedented 22-fight win streak before he decided to move up a weight class and put his pound-for-pound crown on the line against Khabib Nurmagomedov’s successor.

This is a man who with potentially the most complete MMA arsenal we’ve encountered to date, and has traditionally fared extremely well against the promotion’s slickest strikers — he’s got the highest striking differential, most leg kicks landed, and fourth most total strikes landed in UFC featherweight division history.

Most importantly, this is a man who isn’t distracted by the shiny zero in Ilia Topuria’s still largely unproven professional record.

<iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=476&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FKayoSports%2Fvideos%2F901678751425777%2F&show_text=true&width=476&t=0" width="476" height="591" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowFullScreen="true"></iframe>

“He hasn’t proved himself against the top guys,” Volkanovski told me at the recent Kayo Sports-hosted UFC 298 press conference.

“Obviously everyone does have a puncher’s chance, but to be quite honest, that’s all he’s got. I’m very confident in my experience and how calculated I am — my fight IQ — and I think that's what gets it done.”

The Great added: “There are things you need to be careful with him, but I make people fight my fight, and that’s what I plan on doing — he thinks he’s the best, I’m going to show him there are levels to this. I’m going to give him a good humbling.”

While this may toe the line between self-belief and overconfidence for some, when compared to the brash and unsubtle antics of Ilia Topuria, it comes off as downright modest.

Topuria, whose most prolific wins to date have been against Josh Emmett (unanimous decision) and Bryce Mitchell (submission), has been shooting a documentary this entire time titled Road To The Belt.

And if you were to navigate to his Instagram profile, you’d find “World Champion” and “Undefeated 15-0” (implying he’s already defeated Volkanovski), rather arrogantly displayed in his bio. Talk about putting the cart before the horse.

Yet another case of a mixed martial artist clumsily (and uncharismatically) attempting to replicate the Conor McGregor^TM brand. What a goddamn payoff if he actually succeeds, and a power move to end all power moves, but in the meantime… eugh.

Fingers crossed for a Donald Cerrone vs Alexander Hernandez serving of karmic justice with a healthy side of hype train derailment. This sport needs more grounded role models and far fewer insufferable assholes.

ICYMI: The Wednesday Round-Up

Upcoming Events: The Year Ahead

• February 18th, 2024 [10:30 AM]
  UFC 298: Alexander Volkanovski vs Ilia Topuria
  Honda Centre, Anaheim | US

• February 25th, 2024 [4:30 AM]
  PFL Champions vs Bellator Champions
  Kingdom Arena, Riyadh | Saudi Arabia

• February 25th, 2024 [11:00 AM]
  UFC Fight Night: Brandon Moreno vs Brandon Royval II
  Mexico City Arena, Mexico City | Mexico

• March 2nd, 2024 [6:30 AM]
  ONE 166: Reinier de Ridder vs Anatoly Malykhin II
  Lusail Sports Arena, Lusail | Qata

• March 3rd, 2024 [5:00 AM]
  UFC Fight Night: Jairzinho Rozenstruik vs Shamil Gaziev
  UFC APEX, Las Vegas | US

• March 8th, 2024 [3:00 AM]
  2024 PFL Europe Regular Season: France
  Accor Arena, Paris | France

• March 10th, 2024 [10:00 AM]
  UFC 299: Sean O’Malley vs Marlon Vera
  Kaseya Centre, Miami | US

• March 17th, 2024 [7:00 AM]
  UFC Fight Night: Tai Tuivasa vs Marcin Tybur
  UFC APEX, Las Vegas | US

• March 23rd, 2024 [3:00 AM]
  Bellator 302: Corey Anderson vs Karl Moore
  SSE Arena (NIR), Belfast | Northern Ireland

• March 24th, 2024 [10:00 AM]
  UFC Fight Night: Amanda Ribas vs Rose Namahunas
  UFC APEX, Las Vegas | US

• March 31st, 2024 [TBA]
  UFC Fight Night: [TBA]
  Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City | US

• April 7th, 2024 [5:00 AM]
  UFC Fight Night: Marvin Vettori vs Brendan Allen
  UFC APEX, Las Vegas | US

• April 14th, 2024 [8:00 AM]
  UFC 300: [TBA]
  T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas | US

• June 9th, 2024 [1:00 AM]
  2024 PFL Europe Regular Season: United Kingdom
  Utilita Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne | England

• April 23rd, 2024 [2:00 AM]
  UFC Fight Night: Saudi Arabia
  Kingdom Arena, Riyadh | Saudi Arabia

• September 15th, 2024 [8:00 AM]
  UFC [TBA]: [TBA]
  The Sphere, Las Vegas | US

• September 29th, 2024 [1:00 AM]
  2024 PFL Europe Playoffs
  OVO Hydro, Glasgow | Scotland