Diego lopes: Diego Lopes gives five-word reaction as Alexander Volkanovski calls him out for UFC 312 in Sydney

Diego Lopes gives five-word reaction as Alexander Volkanovski calls him out for UFC 312 in Sydney

Modified Oct 17, 2024 13:21 GMT

Diego Lopes (left) reacts to Alexander Volkanovski (right) for UFC 312. [Image courtesy: @alexvolkanovski and @diegolopesmma on Instagram] — Diego Lopes (left) reacts to Alexander Volkanovski's (right) comments. [Images courtesy: @alexvolkanovski and @diegolopesmma on Instagram]

Diego Lopes has won his last five fights, firmly putting himself in the featherweight title mix. The surging Brazilian was recently name-dropped by former champion Alexander Volkanovski, who expressed interest in fighting him at UFC 312 next year in Sydney, Australia.

At a press conference following the official announcement of next year's pay-per-view Down Under, Volkanovski revealed his desire to fight in front of his home crowd. Talking about his return, ‘The Great’ mentioned that he doesn’t want anything less than a title fight, even if it’s an interim title fight against Lopes.

Adding that his first preference is the winner of the upcoming UFC 308 headliner between Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway, the former pound-for-pound king said:

"So, even if it is interim [title], that’s still a big one. I’d say, it’d be an exciting one with [Diego] Lopes. I’d say, if that was going to happen. If not, it’s Max [Holloway] or Ilia [Topuria].”

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Check out Alexander Volkanovski's comments below:

In response, Lopes claimed that he is ready to compete in Sydney in February 2025. He wrote on X:

"February sounds good to me.”

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Lopes has already competed three times this year, most recently securing a dominant unanimous decision victory over Brian Ortega at UFC 306. Meanwhile, Volkanovski is coming off back-to-back knockout losses to Topuria and Islam Makhachev.

Diego Lopes says an undisputed title fight against Ilia Topuria "would be amazing"

UFC 308 is taking place in Abu Dhabi on October 26. Max Holloway will fight for the featherweight title against reigning champion Ilia Topuria, but if anything goes wrong with one of the headliners, Diego Lopes is set to step in. The Mexico-based Brazilian will travel to Abu Dhabi and weigh in as the backup for the main event.

Recently, the Brazilian was asked in an interview who he wants to fight between Topuria and Holloway, to which he replied: