Alexander Volkanovski breaks silence on Ilia Topuria rematch snub ahead of Diego Lopes clash at UFC 314

Alexander Volkanovski was expected to face Ilia Topuria in a title rematch in 2025. The pair clashed at UFC 298 in February 2024, where the Australian suffered his first career defeat at featherweight after being knocked out in Round 2.

Having been knocked out by Islam Makhachev at UFC 294 prior to losing to Topuria, 'The Great' opted to take an extended break from MMA before returning.

Upon his return, it was confirmed that Volkanovski would not be facing Topuria, despite previous indications that he would. Instead, the former champion will face off against Diego Lopes at UFC 314 on April 12 for the vacant featherweight title.

'El Matador' opted to vacate the belt and move to lightweight, which was the reason for his rematch with Volkanovski falling through.

Ahead of the Australian's title fight against Lopes, he was interviewed by mainevent, where he reflected on missing out on a title rematch with Topuria. He said this:

"I wouldn't say disappointed. It was such a slow process... By that stage I'm just like, 'Give me anybody now.' I've had a big break... Yeah a perfect world would have been fighting Ilia in a rematch, getting that win back. But then it got to a point where, who knows how long that's gonna be if I am fighting him."

Catch Alexander Volkanovski's comments about Ilia Topuria rematch below (4:30):

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Alexander Volkanovski breaks down Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria

Following Ilia Topuria's decision to vacate the featherweight title and move to lightweight, there were calls from fans for him to face current 155-pound king Islam Makhachev.

The Dagestani has looked almost untouchable in his lightweight title reign, with his UFC 284 clash with Alexander Volkanovski being by far his toughest test since being crowned champion.

But Topuria's consecutive knockout wins over Volkanovski and Max Holloway, coupled with his high-level grappling skills, have left fans believing 'El Matador' could put an end to Makhachev's reign of dominance.

During a recent interview with Demetrious Johnson, 'The Great' broke down a potential Makhachev vs. Topuria clash, saying this:

"If [Topuria] puts hands on anyone, if he traps them, gets them where they don't wanna be and lands a nice big shot, its gonna be game over. He can knockout anyone, even in the lightweight division... I'm going with what I know, and I know he can hit hard. I’ve felt it firsthand."

Catch Alexander Volkanovski breakdown Makhachev vs. Topuria below (1:21:30):