Henry Cejudo believes Alexander Volkanovski didn’t do himself any favors by agreeing to fight Islam Makhachev in just four months.
With Volkanovski moving up a division to challenge for the lightweight title, Cejudo claims that the chips are already stacked in the natural 155-pound wrestler’s favor. Taking a fight of this magnitude in such a rush will ultimately handicap the Australian Cejudo says.
“He’s gonna take you down, he’s gonna smother you, he’s gonna make you get up, he’s just gonna beat you up, and I think you’re gonna need more time for that,” Cejudo said on his YouTube Channel.
“I don’t understand why they’re doing Australia in February. So damn early, but what you are gonna need, Alexander – I know you have skills, but going up against a guy like this, you’re gonna need a lot more than four months. You’re gonna need the right training partners and the right coaches.”
“At least Charles Oliveira has submissions,” Cejudo continued. “I’m sure Volkanovski can submit, but he hasn’t really shown that. I haven’t seen a submission from him. And then him on his back, and he’s shorter – I mean, there’s a bunch of short Dagestanis in Russia that they’re gonna be able to mimic that.
“But it could also be a plus for Volkanovski, too, but I think Volkanovski’s pound-for-pound title is gonna be short-lived, and I think the wrath of Islam Makhachev is just a little too much.”
The AllStar MMA roundup
- Banned Bets: Will fighters continue to bet despite UFC’s gambling ban?
- Roxanne Modafferi: My experience as a UFC fighter in Abu Dhabi
- Feature: Are UFC fans inconsiderate? ‘You lose. You suck’
- UFC Vegas 63: Tresean Gore dealt with depression leading to bad habits – ‘I’m clean, I’m sober, I’m happy’
- Road to UFC: The dark side of Muay Thai: How one fighter survived and got on the road to the UFC
The best of the rest
- Anderson Silva: I ‘misspoke,’ was never knocked out in sparring – MMAFighting.com
- Uriah Hall reveals post-MMA struggle with depression: ‘At one point, I looked at my firearm’ – MMAFighting.com
- Inaugural Rizin vs. Bellator event could start new MMA tradition – with pride on the line – MMAJunkie.com
- Calvin Kattar moves past questionable decision loss, but wants accountability for judges moving forward – MMAJunkie.com
- USADA tested UFC champ Jiri Prochazka a record 51 times in 2022, 15 this month alone – BloodyElbow.com
The soapbox
Islam shares some touching words about his coach:
DC hints at a move for Petr Yan:
Anderson Silva clears the air:
Nate Diaz is attending the Paul vs Silva fight:
Khamzat gets his hands on the BMF title:
The fight we really want:
Calvin Kattar gets shook up:
Jake Paul arrives to the open workouts on horseback:
The morning view
JHK Updates his fight or flight vlog after a pretty serious injury:
Chase Sherman chats with The AllStar:
Bisping breaks down the long rumoured Khamzat vs Colby:
Dan Hardy has a good look at Anderson Silva vs Jake Paul:
Done deals
Thursday
- Jay Perrin to fight Raul Rosas Jr. at UFC 282 on December 10th (per Iridium Sports)
Wednesday
- Joshua Weems debuts in short notice fight opposite Christian Rodriguez at UFC Vegas 63 (per Marcel Dorff)
Tuesday
- Bryce Mitchell to fight Ilia Topuria at UFC 282 on December 10th (per David Van Auken)
- K.Rodrigues out. Cody Durden will now fight Carlos Mota at UFC Vegas 63 on October 29th (per Guilherme Cruz)
Monday
- None to note
On this day in MMA…
On the 27th of October, 2018, Anthony Smith earned his first (and so far, only) shot at UFC gold when he defeated Volkanovski Oezdemir at UFC Fight Night 138 in New Brunswick, Canada.
The headline bout saw the two light-heavyweight contenders battle it out in a back-and-forth affair through three rounds. Leg kicks were key to Oezdemir’s game plan and looked to be taking a toll on Smith as the fight wore on.
Despite his handicap, ‘Lionheart’ mounted a grappling offense late in the third round, managing to secure Oezdemir’s back and, shortly thereafter, his neck.
After a spotted career inside the UFC, Smith had now strung together an impressive three-fight win streak including finishes of former champions Rashad Evans and Shogun Rua. He used this platform to call for his shot at UFC gold. His wish would be granted with a fight opposite Jon Jones at UFC 235 the following year.
