"He talked about his mental problems" - Ilia Topuria explains why he feels UFC 298 clash with Alexander Volkanovski will be one of his "easier fights"

Alexander Volkanovski is widely regarded as one of the most dominant featherweight champions in UFC history. However, Ilia Topuria believes his bout against 'The Great' at UFC 298 will be one of the easier fights of his career.

Ahead of UFC 298, Jon Anik asked Topuria why he'd previously claimed that Volkanovski would be one of his "easier fights." 'El Matador' replied:

"He lost his last fight. He talked about his mental [health] problems. I feel like he is not at this 100 percent right now, and I feel I'm way better than him anyway."

Volkanovski fell short in his second attempt at the lightweight championship, as he suffered a first-round knockout loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 294. Following the defeat, the 35-year-old opened up about his struggles with mental health, stating that he needs to keep busy to quell his demons.

Despite his troubles at lightweight, Volkanovski is still undefeated as a featherweight in the UFC. He holds wins against some of the best to ever do it at 145 pounds, including Max Holloway, Jose Aldo, and Brian Ortega, among others.

Topuria is also on a dream run in his MMA career. He is currently undefeated and on a six-fight win streak in the UFC. 'El Matador' is coming off a dominant win over Josh Emmett.

The odds suggest that the fight will be a close one, with UFC's official website giving 'The Great' a -112 chance to win the fight, with the Georgian-Spaniard close behind at -108.

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Alexander Volkanovski plans to humble Ilia Topuria at UFC 298

Ilia Topuria has been vocal about his confidence in beating Alexander Volkanovski in the lead-up to UFC 298. However, the Australian champion is convinced that 'El Matador' will crumble before him in Anaheim.

During a recent interview with Megan Olivi, 'The Great' said that he intends to humble the young fighter when they meet in the octagon:

"We'll see how confident he is when I do what I plan on doing in February. You might see a bit of change in his tone after that. He hasn't had someone do that to him yet. That's why I think he'll be getting taught a lesson. Maybe a bit of humbling... If he is used to just being the hammer, he is going to crumble, and you could see him crumble pretty easily in February. That's what I plan on doing. I plan on showing him I'm the king of the division."

Catch Alexander Volkanovski's comments below (11:50):