Boos follow Alex Volkanovski around Las Vegas with every step.
But those fans could be holding torches and pitchforks and the Australian still wouldn’t bat an eyelid ahead of his featherweight title defence against Max Holloway in the co-main event of UFC 276 on Sunday (AEST).
Because, as Volkanovski and Holloway came face to face for the final time before entering the octagon, the Australian told his Hawaiian rival: “They aren’t going to help you.”
And they won’t.
The pair both tipped the scales at 144.5 pounds (65.5kg) for the final instalment in the Volkanovski-Holloway trilogy. The former has won razor-thin decisions both times, and another triumph on Sunday will set him up for a move up to lightweight to challenge for that throne as well.
“[This fight] means everything,” Volkanovski said. “I’m going to hit him with the three-peat. He can soak up the energy because it doesn’t help him. Australia, you know I’m bringing that back to you. Enjoy the show, we’re going to put it on.”
Alex Volkanovski and Max Holloway square off at the weigh-in before they fight on Sunday.Credit:AP
But how did Volkanovski find himself on the receiving end of boos in Las Vegas this week? Simply by beating one of the sport’s most popular fighters – twice.
Bring him back home though, and he would pack out any arena you put him in. UFC officials are targeting a return to Australia in the first third of next year with Volkanovski and Israel Adesanya – who headlines UFC 276 – among a list of contenders including No.3-ranked heavyweight Tai Tuivasa to headline what is shaping as the country’s biggest card in mixed martial arts history.
Adesanya can already lay claim to headlining the event that drew the biggest crowd in UFC history. The promotion’s record of 56,127 was set in Melbourne when Adesanya took the middleweight crown from Rob Whittaker in October, 2019.
Adesanya would take some convincing to stage a trilogy bout with Whittaker. He says he has read that book twice and knows how it ends – much like Volkanovski, who has fought and beaten Holloway twice. But the Hawaiian is back on the doorstep again, simply because he would not let anyone else make their way through the front gate.
Another loss in Las Vegas on Sunday could leave the former champion in title purgatory. A fourth fight between the pair would be hard to justify if Volkanovski reigns again.
“This guy told me, ‘Bring the heat’,” Holloway said. “The joke is on him, I am the heat. I’ve had 10 rounds with this guy; [on Sunday] we don’t go past three.”
Adesanya doubled down on his vow to vanquish another challenger with ease after weighing in at 183.5 pounds, one pound lighter than middleweight rival Jared Cannonier.
“This is the biggest show of the year, and I’m going to make it look easy,” Adesanya said. “King Kong ain’t got shit on me.”
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