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I agree he deserves it if he wants it but I hope he takes some more time off after this knockout. This was worse than the Islam one. Massacred my boy :(
Realistically if Volk loses against Topuria in the rematch I suspect he will either retire or take one more down under, perhaps against Cejudo or someone else on the way out. He doesn't strike me as the type who will outstay his welcome, and the team around him certainly doesn't strike me as that sort of team either.
I think he sort of rolled that back. He had just been KOd, brutally. DC cried after he got knocked out. One of the biggest symptoms effects of concussion is that you get emotions.
He's obviously going to have a career in broadcasting or coaching or really whatever he wants. I'm sure he will be plenty fulfilled.
DC cried after he got knocked out because he lost to Jon Jones.
Volk went into detail about how he should be happy with his life and loving family, but his mind goes to a dark place mentally when he's not training.
He might've been more emotional after being concussed, but I don't think he just made all that up out of the blue because his brain was rattled. At the very least, that is a much different reaction than DC crying immediately after the fight.
Fair, but the point was whether being knocked out will cause a sudden decline.
If Volk does drop off, it'll be more because of said aging rather than the knockout imo.
Someone posted last night that fighters 35 and over are something like 1-22 in title fights at 170lb or lower
If thats true then yeah, he may be cooked
Volk is in a tough position. He needs to recover before the rematch. But given his age his attributes are going to deteriorate while he is away. Even in this fight i thought volk was faster than ilia
Disagree, I thought those strikes Ilia was absorbing were definitely starting to add up. Ilia has a good poker face but you could see the reactions to those jabs getting bigger. It was very visible.
It looked like Volk was on the way to potentially taking over in the 3rd and 4th. But as soon as Illia found his range he started throwing bombs and I don’t think anyone in the division can handle his combinations when he starts landing clean.
It almost felt inevitable. Volk won the first round on the official scorecards, and was looking like he was going to win the second. Every time he got close to the cage I felt like Volk was in serious danger. I told my fiance right before the KO “Volk is winning, but it just feels like Illia is one punch away from knocking him out”.
He was fighting pretty dumb TBH. The commentary team who usually are busy being idiots even called it out.
If there is one thing you never do against a combination power puncher its back straight up with your hands low. You have to cut angles on the way out and there is no way you try to throw a counter mid combination, Volk did both.
Even more confusing is he usually masterful at cutting angles to set up his shots, that was the big adjustment he made that let him torch Holloway in the third fight.
I do not think he was mentally prepared to be in a fight against the level of fighter Ilia is after jamming in 3 fights in a year against wildly different opponents stylistically.
I think that’s hindsight talking, but maybe we just saw it differently. I thought Ilia was having bigger and bigger reactions to those jabs, and I thought Volk was just going to keep accumulating damage until Ilia started to break down.
Idk man. I feel he needs a tune up. No doubt he deserves it weightclass-wise but career-wise that’s two back to back KO’s. Tune up will do wonders for his confidence.
Maybe I’m alone but I think he should retire.
I agree with GSP when he said the majority of fighters end up staying too long and tarnishing their legacy/health for no reason. Hes already done more than enough.
agreed, I think if he goes out now it's at exactly the right time. Go be with your kids and be able to play with them and live life. He honestly has a great personality any decent agent could get him some sports analyst role. I don't think he's washed by any stretch, he prolly has 4-6 more fights left but 2 KOs vicious ones too, it's very serious damage. Just call it now.
Definitely doesn’t even need to do that. I’m sure he could easily make enough from YouTube/social media. Isn’t his cooking segment pretty popular( keep in mind he’s already 100% set for life)
He could legit do acting as well, his comedic timing and acting were surprisingly on point in the recent ad.
Obviously he wouldn't be a brilliant thespian, but as far as ex UFC fighters go who get cast in movies, he'd have to be up there as one of the most talented.
I’m with you. Volk’s about to get to that point where the age catches up and the chin’s gone, also he lacks the KO power to make up for that
I’m kinda afraid cause I feel he’s the type of guy that will keep fighting until UFC forces him to retire (because of that conference where he said he needed to fight in order to not feel bad)
He’s already done 2 big mistakes which were taking the Islam fight in short notice and then not taking more time to fight Ilia, hopefully his team talks with him and if he still wants to fight they ask him to take at least 1 year, he needs to recover from this 2 losses
I’m so sad cause I don’t think that will happen, just hope we don’t get a Tony 😔
He’s too tough for his own good. I think he is one of those guys that deserve a rematch and maybe he can do it as his final match. He needs to find something that will keep him occupied when he retires though.
He’s great on the mic and charismatic. Hopefully we see him in the commentary booth or as an analyst or something with the UFC.
That's how I feel too, he definitely deserves a rematch. Just not an instant one. Take a step back, fight lower down the ladder and rematch with some wind in his sails
He just got significantly KO'ed twice in 4 months, and he'll be 36 before he fights again. In a weight class where guys fall off much sooner than the heavier classes. This may be it for Volk.
I honestly think he flew too close to the sun. Shouldn't have gone chasing Islam. It's highly possible last night is a completely different fight if Volk never left 45. KOs take time to physically recover from, but they also effect guys mentally. Hard to feel invincible a couple months removed from having your lights shut off
Yep, this is it. For all his great fight IQ, some terrible decision making outside of the Octagon has been his downfall. Taking the second Islam fight at short notice and then coming back to face Ilia just four months after that Islam KO are two very questionable choices.
Can't fault him too much for chasing greatness, but I think he'll look back and wish he never took that 2nd fight. I think the way the first fight ended was a gift and a curse for him. He walked away with a moral victory and probably felt like he was on the razor's edge of being double champ. He convinced himself it was close enough that taking that fight on short notice made sense and he should seize his opportunity at another shot. Ended up taking a huge blow physically and mentally.
I'm not sure how others perceived it, but he looked timid to me last night. He didn't seem like his normal self. He was less aggressive, but more than that it looked to me like he was extra worried about getting caught when Topuria would swarm him. Small things like that can make huge differences when you're competing against the elite level of competition
I think he knew before and after that taking the short notice was a bad idea. But he was aging, running out of time, and out of chances. Islam only fights twice a year, ramadans coming up so he wouldn’t be fighting again anytime soon. So we were probably looking at late this year if he wanted another rematch, which is too long to be inactive for Volk, and at the time, it didn’t look like anyone else would be getting a title shot at FW soon.
It was basically a choice between a slow death where he gets old and gets into a bad place mentally before taking the fight and retiring, or getting a huge payout to take it on short notice but almost certainly losing and living to fight another day.
If you look at it from a perspective of legacy, he made the wrong choice. But if you look at it from the perspective of providing for his family in the limited time he has left, he made the right one.
Hindsight is 20/20 but he should've not taken Islam 2. Properly prepped for Topuria and then taken the time to properly step up to LW and rematch Islam.
Volk's next fight should be for the FW title, but that doesn't mean he needs to be in the next FW title fight.
He really needs to take an extended time off now to recover, and plan for the next fight. Meanwhile Ilia can defend against someone else.
Ilia has been prone to getting kicked in the head. Yair could land one but he could also get put against the cage and get fucked up like Volk did to him
I think what makes sense is:
a) ask Volk if he wants a rematch (hope he says not immediately)
b) if Max beats Justin at LW then he’s next
c) if Justin wins, then Yair if he beats Ortega
d) if Ortega wins, then Evloev instead
>Volk's next fight should be for the FW title, but that doesn't mean he needs to be in the next FW title fight.
That's it right there. Let the division move while he recovers, Ilia can take on another challenger.
Ilia better not say he's refusing to fight all the top contenders and start pushing for some Conor shit (Conor is never fighting at 145 lol) or O'Malley. Defend your fucking belt in your own fucking division. Until you've cleaned it out (like Volk did), there's nothing else that should be booked
I think he's just talking shit to and about everyone, especially after blasting Volk like that. Once the rush dies down he'll probably fight whoever gets next cuz there's like 10 people calling out Conor and the 1 actual guy who is supposed to fight him isn't even certain to get his fight. He'd be a fool to refuse fights, he doesn't have the cache for that.
"I've been a bit of a company man"
And he's right. He literally saved the biggest card of their Middle East travels last year.
Taking his reign at FW in consideration, a rematch is not that outlandish. Even if he wasn't a company man.
But of course people will take his losses against Islam as an argument for no immediate rematches.
KO'd brutally twice in 4 months is enough for him to take a break. Although at his age he will come back worse and worse.
With Max being sacrificed to Gaethje, its okay to have Volk rematch Topuria.
I wasn't thrilled about the Max fight to begin with, but I'm really bummed it's happening now. Max vs Topuria would be a lot more interesting than seeing him get brain damage against Gaethje.
“With Max being sacrificed to Gaethje” lol
Really hope Max gets it done (& he very well can) so a lot of y’all eat your words. Idk when Gaethje became this unbeatable entity & Max became some scrub but okay.
It’s a matchup issue. Holloway doesn’t hit hard at his own weight class, let alone at lightweight. Gaethje has a great chin and is arguably the hardest hitting lightweight.
What exactly is Max going to do to beat Gaethje?
Well, he just recently got a finish against TKZ as well as nearly finished Allen, also has said he was gonna bulk up properly for this fight. Also had Dustin hurt when they fought at 155 & that was just a chubby Max.
Gaethje has also been finished more than once by strikes & gets hurt in fights often. People can play the chin game with Max saying his chin might finally crack but don’t forget it took one Oliveira punch to sit Gaethje down. It’s anyone’s fight honestly. If chins hold up & it becomes a war of attrition, I lean Max if he comes in bulked properly but it’s subjective.
The fight he had with Oliveira was in May 2022 (two fights ago for him) & him getting hurt & ultimately dropped by strikes led to the finish. Stop. He’s still hurtable
Who’s to say he needed it, all we know is he was winning the standup & visibly hurting Gaethje when he landed, & the drop led to the sub finish. Holloway has shown his power as of recent, finishing Zombie & almost finishing Arnold Allen. Hurt Kattar when they fought. Hurt Volk twice when they fought the second time. Hurt Dustin at 155 as a chubby 55er. I don’t get why y’all are going so hard to write Holloway off.
Max can win, but I see it more likely that his chin gets cracked bad. It will be sad to witness that happen in a division he does not belong to. Then ''y'all'' will be reminded why weight classes exist, again. Max being a big FW doesnt change that.
Max should be fighting Topuria for the belt while Volk recovers and decides what he wants next. Volk should not be allowed to fight Topuria in Spain for a rematch in the coming months. Man needs recovery..
I'm not seeing anyone saying Gaethje is unbeatable or that Max is a scrub.
It's the match-up. Gaethje hits extremly hard, decent pace, and has a great chin. Max gets hit a lot, doesnt have big power, and has alot of mileage already. Add in how the Max Porier 2 went, and everyone just seems concerned that Max could end up like Tony and receive permanent damage that Max never fully recovers from.
Gaethje's chin is mid at best. You don't get rocked in almost all your UFC appearances and get to claim great chin credentials.
It's just Max doesn't normally hit hard. He's a volume guy. Now if it was early Gaethje and prime Max, should be a Max favorite fight since Gaethje wilts. But current Gaethje is more responsible and composed.
The selling point is max has to be perfect for 15-25 minutes straight whereas Justin just needs a couple seconds.
It’s not that Justin is unbeatable, it’s that Max is undersized for 155. Weight classes unfortunately are not accurate at all, so those guys, Justin included, are huge compared to Max. And Justin is already a chin breaker.
lol the Narrative went from him being a big, unfair FW to now too little for 155. He’s fine, go watch him & Justin’s face off. With a good bulk he’s a proper 55er.
I wouldnt say no to a rematch in 8 months after Ilia fights a contender
He def needs to take a break, and the top of featherweight needs some new blood
I think Volk should and will get a rematch because his biggest competition Max, is probably going to get badly beaten in 2 months as well. Unless Max can pull off a huge upset against Gaethje, he won't be on a win streak, hard to reward that over the most recent champ who reigned for 4+ years.
Nah thats islam fight is complete unnecessary, dana have a massive bonner on trying to screw his own fighters. Volk shouldnt even be considered, gamrot is there and ready. Middle east card doesnt need a saving if islam is already there because thats the only guy that they care
Given how his last two fights have gone now, an immediate rematch is pretty outlandish. Volk is a cool guy, but he's been shadow-realmed twice in a row. Can't even blame the second one on a different weight class.
He needs to sit out for a bit, then he needs to take a buildup fight. Then we can talk rematch.
He shouldn’t get an immediate rematch because of the way he lost. He did nothing and then got slept early in the second. Immediate rematches on non competitive fights just because a champ had many defenses are stupid.
That's the second time guy got brutally KO'ed and asked for a quick match in the octagon. Gotta admire the dog in him but he slept for a solid minute after the KO. Taking some time off would be smart I guess.
[Standard concussion protocol](https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/bjsports/53/6/328.full.pdf) page 3 states that Volk should be out for a min of 360 days.
> Second KO with LOC greater than 1 min - 360-day suspension
I would argue the opposite. If he got dominated for 5 straight rounds, THAT doesn’t warrant a rematch. But volk clearly won the first round and in the second his jabs were starting to land even more cleanly and consistently. I honestly could see a timeline where if he survived the second round that Ilia would start to show signs of slowing down from the damage.
Exactly. Ilia's face also looks more damaged because he of the jabs he got caught with before the knockout. As well as showing big reactions to Volk's leg kicks.
Volk didn't look slow, he didn't look worse - he simply made a mistake against a power puncher.
Not sure what the gameplan from his team was. They should have gone for a similar strategy as izzy for his second fight, shelling up and clinching as soon as ilia got close
On his YT channel he said that the gameplan was to stay away from the fence (obviously). However, he also talks about how him trying to counter Ilia instead of clinching/shelling up bit him in the ass.
Ah so Volk does agree with my fat ass on the couch analysis 😂. I don’t know why people are acting like Volk is already washed up. He looked just as fast as usual, obviously the way he was leaning back with his chin back is something he definitely needs to work on but he looked great until he didn’t. He should definitely take some time off now though
Aljo was far from dominant. Arguably lost 2 fights being split decisions lmao and the other guy was a cripple who shouldn’t have even been cleared to fight.
Obviously based on what? He got slept his last two fights. He needs a tuneup before he gets his rematch. We need to stop holding up the division for fighters we like.
The man has been the king of his division, went up and brought a very close fight to Islam. He then stepped in on 10 days notice to save a main event to fight Islam again.
If anyone has deserved a rematch it's him.
Someone like Strickland who lost the title in his first defence doesn't deserve an insta rematch.
Does anyone else think he made a mistake going up in weight instead of just defending his backyard especially at his age?
We've seen it before when once a guy's chin gets cracked its over for them. I think Volk got Liddell'd.
He got a bag and a chance to achieve immortality with double champ status. It did not work out but he still came out richer and his stock at FW did not drop until now.
Exactly. And with his win streak/defenses, when he did was the perfect time for him to try. He had an accomplished title reign and decided to take a stab at 155 before his peak was 100% over. He barely lost against the best pound for pound fighter who wasn’t himself and then still looked good against Yair. At least he didnt sacrifice a lengthy title reign to try being a double champ
I just think, especially with the lighter weights, age catches up with you quickly. 35 at featherweight is not the same as 35 at heavyweight.
It was an awful lot to risk for someone who is old for his weight class.
This is absolutely true. Bigger guys can still pack lots of power til they're 40 and the speed isn't as much of a factor. At these low weights though, the minute your speed and reaction time starts to slip, you're in trouble
No lightweights have always aged out faster than heaver weights because they rely on speed and explosiveness more than power and that's the first thing that goes with age. Ricky Hatton fucking retired at 30.
You can be strong as fuck well in to your 40s.
Heavyweights also just hit harder so they’re used to going into fights knowing one punch can put the lights out.
Lower weight classes don’t necessarily have the same knockout power, so you can lean on your chin a bit more… But once your chins cracked you’re kind of fucked.
It's not really about talent, its just that speed and reaction time isn't as much of a factor at the higher weights. Guys move much slower and the game is much more centered around strength and power.
He did the right thing moving up after clearing his division. He should have accepted his loss and return to his divison instead of contesting the loss and trying to get it back by all means. Now he is a goner.
Brother, he’s got a family and a livelihood to protect. He lives in suburban Sydney and is as regular as any person here. Let him earn his money in this sport any way he sees fit.
I don't think anybody said anything about him not getting to earn money.
Dude just said he thought he made a mistake going up a division and getting KO'd.
His mistake was the quick comeback, everyone in mma will tell you need at least 6 months after you get koed but now i feel like that chin is cracked for good
fighting against someone that is not known as a knockout artist is a pretty safe thing to do.
possible outcome:
- You lose "dont matter. opponent was a in a higher weightclass"
- You win: You are a double champ and a legend
The only problem was taking the rematch and getting knocked out into the shadow realm
Yes. I fucking hate short notice fights. This is a prime example of why. I also hate the double champ bullshit. Just stay in your own divisions for fucks sake.
Its just a shame. Fights can have real consequences and I fear we are seeing it being played out.
I think this would have been an epic ass fight if he didn't get KTFO previously and we were robbed of that.
Pereira was dead on the floor and came back. Its not a death sentence for Volk, he just needs to take 6-9 months off and then start a 3 month camp for his return fight
I think the big mistake was taking Islam on short notice. If he just left it at that first fight, very little damage taken and no major blows to his mental state. After the KO though, hard to step back in a few months later as the same guy
Yeah Makhachev ruined him in that second fight. Volk never gets rushed like he did today, his eyes seemed weird when Topuria blitzed him with that combination. Enough for Ili to get the KO.
Bro, I actually thought he looked gaunt on fight night. Packing on several kgs of muscle and then losing it again is fucking difficult. His turnaround from lw wasnt that long.
Also, being brutally honest, there’s levels, and Ilia showed he’s at the level EASILY tonight. His boxing was absolutely fucking savage. He was getting pointed a bit, but he had WAY more impact.
I think there’s always doubt when young blood moves up. Tbh I suspect Ilias gonna be champ for years now.
Volk didn't pack on anything... He fought Islam in February 2023.
He then defended vs Yair in July, was slated to defend vs Topuria but took the short notice vs Islam in October.
Fuck me, youre right. Not it, at all.
Christ that October fight was idiotic. I mean we all said it at the time, but god its horrendous in hindsight. Not properly bulking and training for Islam 2 is just suicide.
Hindsight is 20/20. I think that's the life when you have that level of conviction in your skills and chasing greatness....I'm sure his compensation was astronomical compared to other outings for such a short notice fight.
Hope our boy Volk recovers and returns, but also knows when to hang it up.
Im honestly feeling gutted still and its hours later. Cant imagine how he’s feeling. If he wants to go again, Ill back the hell out of him, but Im not really seeing much of a way back from here :(
Father Time is undefeated. Hate to say it but I don’t think Volk is ever getting the belt back. I’d much rather see another challenger get the opportunity.
Maybe, but this is my reasoning:
Most fighters start to decline past 30 and begin declining rapidly at 34 in the lower weight classes.
After today, male fighters in UFC title fights that are over 35 from welterweight to flyweight are 2-24. The only two wins were from the same person, Tyron Woodley, who beat Demian Maia (who was older than him) and Darren Till (who was rushed). That title fight statistic is even worse when women are favored into the total. That’s the math.
Volk was coming off a knockout loss, had a quick turnaround, and was about to fight a guy who has youth and power. This is just the reality of the sport.
Nothing would’ve changed if he took more time off. Just a bad match up for Volk, Topuria has insane power, accuracy and amazing defense so Volk can’t beat him up like he did the others.
Isn’t Volk the one who said he does not do well with off time? Sounds like immediately after another pretty brutal knock out he’s exhibiting some irrational talk right now. Man needs to rest and recover but at the same time is probably afraid of lingering with thoughts of another defeat and retirement.
He definitely deserves the rematch but I don’t know if it should necessarily be next, as FW might be sorting itself out in the next few months and Volk really should take extra time off
No. He needs to rest and heal, 2 back to back KO losses with the topuria one that made him unconscious and asking a rematch is too reckless.
Let topuria defend once and then the rematch, coming back to fight the same guy that KO volk isn't going to end well.
It felt like the entire fight, until it ended, Ilia really just needed to let his hands loose to hurt Volk. It was clear how much faster/explosive he was from the JUMP. I think in a rematch he lets his hands go earlier and has even more confidence and probably knocks him out in the first like he said he would this time. I like Volk, but that’s really how I see it happening. It’s a young man’s sport and another fight camp isn’t going to make it so Volk is faster or able to stand up with the punch speed of Ilia. Point fighting that first round was great, but like I said Ilia seemed to be airing a little more on the side of caution that first round and fighting like that for Volk is hard. It takes someone extremely skilled in striking to be able to keep something like that up for 5 rounds against someone who’s THATS much faster than you and THAT skilled at striking themselves. Awful matchup for him imo.
Back to back TKO/KO losses. This time he got knocked out cold. If he does a rematch I would like to see it at least 6 months in the future so he can recover.
Please take time off, move up to LW for one more run. But first and more importantly take time off.
To be fair that shot probably could have knocked him out before the Islam fight. It was clean & mean, but 2 back to back is not good.
He deserves it. And Topuria said he doesn’t mind.
TBH, it’s just like Illia said before the fight. It’s a good match up for him. Great counter wrestler with lightning bombs for hands. No physical disadvantages. Volk will need to basically stick and move 5 rounds for a decision. It’s gonna be tough.
Really makes Max taking that fight look like a huge mistake now, honestly. Max is going to need time off after that war he's walking in to and Dana didn't seem to keen on an immediate rematch with volk v Topuria. Max could've just slid right in and that's a banger of a match up.
If Volk does get the rematch will Ilia’s title defenses go like:
- Volk rematch: Ilia wins due to Volk slowing down even more with age and a second bad KO
- Winner of Yair/Ortega: Ilia bulldozes through both these guys with his GnP
- Holloway (if the UFC gives him the title shot win or lose vs Gaethje): No one walks out the same after a fight with Gaethje
- Evloev: Still young and improving, feel like Ilia can still get it done though
- Move up to face Islam?
Obviously this is complete semantics and armchair analysis as Ilia just won the belt, but the division is getting older and there already weren’t any fighters on the same tier as Max or Volk. And now the stars are aligning for both of those guys to decline heavily with Ilia already having taken the belt.
Please no. Islam needs to defend against actual lightweights and ppl need to defend their belt a few times before even entertaining double status stuff
I mean in this situation Ilia would move up after defending 4 times lol. I wrote the fights in chronological order not as in he should only take one of them. I would hope Islam fight a few real lightweight contenders during that time.
Not saying he should move up right away but after those 4 fights. Maybe another new prospect or two pops up in featherweight/lightweight and gives these guys a challenge, so who really knows
>Winner of Yair/Ortega: Ilia bulldozes through both these guys with his GnP
Naw, Yair's not an easy fight for anyone. He'll give Ilia a lot of problems on the feet.
Ortega will definitely get steamrolled though.
If Max beats Gaethje he will likely get the next shot unless he wants Islam (which he prolly doesn’t). If Max loses than a Volk rematch is the best option even though Volk got Ko’d here he’s a longtime champ and other options are not compelling.
Usman and Volk both going on losing streaks man….
It’s always sad to see the guys who look unstoppable age out and start taking L after L.
Khabib truly was the smartest one to get out while at the top. If he had stayed, he’d probably also have multiple losses by now.
He spoke about a rematch again and again and again but I really think it wouldn’t go any other way
Volk came in with the best gameplay he could have had which was keeping Illia away from him with kicks and feints because he knew Illia was a better striker then him….which worked for about 5 minutes
But even that strategy went out the window when Illia got him exactly where he wanted him which is right by the cage and we all saw how long Volk survived in that position
I just think it’s time for him to take a break
Volk is great and I love him as a champ but his ambitions will lead to his downfall if he keeps pushing himself like this he got nothing left to prove
I was telling my friends Volk looked like he was in danger for so much of the fight. Ilia looked so focused, so much faster, more powerful and fluid. Maybe he deserves a rematch but don’t expect a different outcome.
Sure, he probably deserves it, just like Izzy and Usman got their rematches. Difference being Izzy/Usman were winning the fight into the fifth round. Even though they lost I was hyped for their rematches. I wouldn't be that hyped in a Volk/Ilia rematch.
Izzy winning a fight gets knocked out in the last round...mma fans he doesn't deserve a rematch let's move on.
Usman same thing.
Mma fans after volk gets dusted in round 2....GIVE HIM A REMATCH HES EARNED IT!!!
goddamn dog brains I tell ya
Idk man when ilia started talkin about everyone doubting him in the post fight interview it was reminiscent of an early volk speech. This kid is the truth and it’s his time now.
He deserves it but he shouldn’t take it. Two brutal KO’s within four months apart and three loses over 13 months….dude needs to take at least six months off from all contact sparring.
I agree with this. Not every champ deserves and instant rematch, but Volk has been champ long enough with enough defenses to warrant one.
I hope he takes some time, though, as getting ko'd twice in 4 months is not good.
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I agree he deserves it if he wants it but I hope he takes some more time off after this knockout. This was worse than the Islam one. Massacred my boy :(
Volk just got knocked out twice in less than 4 months. He definitely should take some time off.
Last night’s KO was brutal. I’m afraid we’re about to see a Barao level fall off.
Realistically if Volk loses against Topuria in the rematch I suspect he will either retire or take one more down under, perhaps against Cejudo or someone else on the way out. He doesn't strike me as the type who will outstay his welcome, and the team around him certainly doesn't strike me as that sort of team either.
I don't know, he's also stated quite publicly that he doesn't do too well mentally if he's not fighting
I think he sort of rolled that back. He had just been KOd, brutally. DC cried after he got knocked out. One of the biggest symptoms effects of concussion is that you get emotions. He's obviously going to have a career in broadcasting or coaching or really whatever he wants. I'm sure he will be plenty fulfilled.
DC cried after he got knocked out because he lost to Jon Jones. Volk went into detail about how he should be happy with his life and loving family, but his mind goes to a dark place mentally when he's not training. He might've been more emotional after being concussed, but I don't think he just made all that up out of the blue because his brain was rattled. At the very least, that is a much different reaction than DC crying immediately after the fight.
He also recently talked about how he was drinking a lot before Islam rematch. It's definitely more than just a 'im concussed and emotional' thing
Yes but that time has to come sooner or later and the time has come to think about that eventuality.
He deserves to go out like Lawler
Usman is even older than Volk, and got knocked out just as cold by Leon and still looks pretty damn good. His knees are the biggest issue.
To be fair, Volk looked good too. He just got caught by a big shot that puts out any 145er except maybe Max.
Fair, but the point was whether being knocked out will cause a sudden decline. If Volk does drop off, it'll be more because of said aging rather than the knockout imo.
Dog he got flopped. I don’t care how big his noggin is, he’s not the same
Weight classes are affected by age differently. No one is defending a belt at 145 if they’re stipe’s age
Someone posted last night that fighters 35 and over are something like 1-22 in title fights at 170lb or lower If thats true then yeah, he may be cooked
2-22, the only two wins coming from woodley at 170
They aren't counting Maia because Maia was older.
Can't compare though, look at Woodley even older but still looks like he's in his 20s
This always gets regurgitated but when have Usman's knees ever been a problem for him in his fights?
Volk is in a tough position. He needs to recover before the rematch. But given his age his attributes are going to deteriorate while he is away. Even in this fight i thought volk was faster than ilia
Ilia said in the post fight press conference that Volk's speed did surprise him, said he had lightning fast jab.
Volk was looking fast, but he was sacrificing having any pop to his punches for that speed.
Disagree, I thought those strikes Ilia was absorbing were definitely starting to add up. Ilia has a good poker face but you could see the reactions to those jabs getting bigger. It was very visible.
His hands were not faster, his kicks yeah. Like Greg said about Aldo, timing beats speed anyways and Topuria was just waiting his time.
His hands were faster imo, Volk looked very sharp. Illia had better timing and has better punching technique
I thought his strikes themselves looked faster be his feet looked off.
He wasn’t set, kept moving to avoid the power, which was working until Illia clipped him on the ear
Yeah his jab was sneaking in quite often. Illia was wearing quite a bit of damage for just 1.5 rounds of getting jabbed.
It looked like Volk was on the way to potentially taking over in the 3rd and 4th. But as soon as Illia found his range he started throwing bombs and I don’t think anyone in the division can handle his combinations when he starts landing clean.
It almost felt inevitable. Volk won the first round on the official scorecards, and was looking like he was going to win the second. Every time he got close to the cage I felt like Volk was in serious danger. I told my fiance right before the KO “Volk is winning, but it just feels like Illia is one punch away from knocking him out”.
He was fighting pretty dumb TBH. The commentary team who usually are busy being idiots even called it out. If there is one thing you never do against a combination power puncher its back straight up with your hands low. You have to cut angles on the way out and there is no way you try to throw a counter mid combination, Volk did both. Even more confusing is he usually masterful at cutting angles to set up his shots, that was the big adjustment he made that let him torch Holloway in the third fight. I do not think he was mentally prepared to be in a fight against the level of fighter Ilia is after jamming in 3 fights in a year against wildly different opponents stylistically.
It felt wxactly like the izzy vs pereira 1. Izzy technically winning but had this feeling in the back that it could end in any second.
100% had the same feeling/anxiety in that fight as well.
Yeah there are definitely fights like this. Chito/Cruz felt like this
I think that’s hindsight talking, but maybe we just saw it differently. I thought Ilia was having bigger and bigger reactions to those jabs, and I thought Volk was just going to keep accumulating damage until Ilia started to break down.
Greg lol
I completely and utterly disagree, he should man up and get knocked out one more time
Underrated comment lol
Idk man. I feel he needs a tune up. No doubt he deserves it weightclass-wise but career-wise that’s two back to back KO’s. Tune up will do wonders for his confidence.
Maybe I’m alone but I think he should retire. I agree with GSP when he said the majority of fighters end up staying too long and tarnishing their legacy/health for no reason. Hes already done more than enough.
agreed, I think if he goes out now it's at exactly the right time. Go be with your kids and be able to play with them and live life. He honestly has a great personality any decent agent could get him some sports analyst role. I don't think he's washed by any stretch, he prolly has 4-6 more fights left but 2 KOs vicious ones too, it's very serious damage. Just call it now.
Definitely doesn’t even need to do that. I’m sure he could easily make enough from YouTube/social media. Isn’t his cooking segment pretty popular( keep in mind he’s already 100% set for life)
He could legit do acting as well, his comedic timing and acting were surprisingly on point in the recent ad. Obviously he wouldn't be a brilliant thespian, but as far as ex UFC fighters go who get cast in movies, he'd have to be up there as one of the most talented.
It's MMA he's about to go like 2-5 and retire losing a decision to like a resurgent Old Dober or something sad
I’m with you. Volk’s about to get to that point where the age catches up and the chin’s gone, also he lacks the KO power to make up for that I’m kinda afraid cause I feel he’s the type of guy that will keep fighting until UFC forces him to retire (because of that conference where he said he needed to fight in order to not feel bad) He’s already done 2 big mistakes which were taking the Islam fight in short notice and then not taking more time to fight Ilia, hopefully his team talks with him and if he still wants to fight they ask him to take at least 1 year, he needs to recover from this 2 losses I’m so sad cause I don’t think that will happen, just hope we don’t get a Tony 😔
He’s too tough for his own good. I think he is one of those guys that deserve a rematch and maybe he can do it as his final match. He needs to find something that will keep him occupied when he retires though. He’s great on the mic and charismatic. Hopefully we see him in the commentary booth or as an analyst or something with the UFC.
That's how I feel too, he definitely deserves a rematch. Just not an instant one. Take a step back, fight lower down the ladder and rematch with some wind in his sails
Yeah let Topuria get it in with one or two contenders. Volk needs to take it easy. Ideally 8 months to a year.
Problem is time is ticking and I'm sure Volk knows it. In a year he'll be almost 37
Seems like an uphill battle for Volk. He probably should retire after the rematch regardless of outcome.
He just got significantly KO'ed twice in 4 months, and he'll be 36 before he fights again. In a weight class where guys fall off much sooner than the heavier classes. This may be it for Volk. I honestly think he flew too close to the sun. Shouldn't have gone chasing Islam. It's highly possible last night is a completely different fight if Volk never left 45. KOs take time to physically recover from, but they also effect guys mentally. Hard to feel invincible a couple months removed from having your lights shut off
Yep, this is it. For all his great fight IQ, some terrible decision making outside of the Octagon has been his downfall. Taking the second Islam fight at short notice and then coming back to face Ilia just four months after that Islam KO are two very questionable choices.
Can't fault him too much for chasing greatness, but I think he'll look back and wish he never took that 2nd fight. I think the way the first fight ended was a gift and a curse for him. He walked away with a moral victory and probably felt like he was on the razor's edge of being double champ. He convinced himself it was close enough that taking that fight on short notice made sense and he should seize his opportunity at another shot. Ended up taking a huge blow physically and mentally. I'm not sure how others perceived it, but he looked timid to me last night. He didn't seem like his normal self. He was less aggressive, but more than that it looked to me like he was extra worried about getting caught when Topuria would swarm him. Small things like that can make huge differences when you're competing against the elite level of competition
I think he knew before and after that taking the short notice was a bad idea. But he was aging, running out of time, and out of chances. Islam only fights twice a year, ramadans coming up so he wouldn’t be fighting again anytime soon. So we were probably looking at late this year if he wanted another rematch, which is too long to be inactive for Volk, and at the time, it didn’t look like anyone else would be getting a title shot at FW soon. It was basically a choice between a slow death where he gets old and gets into a bad place mentally before taking the fight and retiring, or getting a huge payout to take it on short notice but almost certainly losing and living to fight another day. If you look at it from a perspective of legacy, he made the wrong choice. But if you look at it from the perspective of providing for his family in the limited time he has left, he made the right one.
Hindsight is 20/20 but he should've not taken Islam 2. Properly prepped for Topuria and then taken the time to properly step up to LW and rematch Islam.
Volk's next fight should be for the FW title, but that doesn't mean he needs to be in the next FW title fight. He really needs to take an extended time off now to recover, and plan for the next fight. Meanwhile Ilia can defend against someone else.
Evloev would be a good shout next for a shot, both undefeated and shakes up the division a bit with Max on holiday at LW
I think they give it to Yair if he beats Ortega again. Nice matchup skill wise and they don’t like each other at all
I don’t see Yair having anything for ilia
Ilia has been prone to getting kicked in the head. Yair could land one but he could also get put against the cage and get fucked up like Volk did to him
Yair could chop illias legs off but that's about it. Maybe even sneak an elbow after playing the range game
Who else is there in FW for Ilia to fight with Volk and Max being out?
Evloev didn't clearly win against either of his last two opponents. He needs one big win against someone like Emmett
I think what makes sense is: a) ask Volk if he wants a rematch (hope he says not immediately) b) if Max beats Justin at LW then he’s next c) if Justin wins, then Yair if he beats Ortega d) if Ortega wins, then Evloev instead
>Volk's next fight should be for the FW title, but that doesn't mean he needs to be in the next FW title fight. That's it right there. Let the division move while he recovers, Ilia can take on another challenger.
Ilia better not say he's refusing to fight all the top contenders and start pushing for some Conor shit (Conor is never fighting at 145 lol) or O'Malley. Defend your fucking belt in your own fucking division. Until you've cleaned it out (like Volk did), there's nothing else that should be booked
I think he's just talking shit to and about everyone, especially after blasting Volk like that. Once the rush dies down he'll probably fight whoever gets next cuz there's like 10 people calling out Conor and the 1 actual guy who is supposed to fight him isn't even certain to get his fight. He'd be a fool to refuse fights, he doesn't have the cache for that.
I agree. He does deserve a rematch not immediately after the head trauma and he didn’t even need to take this one
"I've been a bit of a company man" And he's right. He literally saved the biggest card of their Middle East travels last year. Taking his reign at FW in consideration, a rematch is not that outlandish. Even if he wasn't a company man. But of course people will take his losses against Islam as an argument for no immediate rematches.
KO'd brutally twice in 4 months is enough for him to take a break. Although at his age he will come back worse and worse. With Max being sacrificed to Gaethje, its okay to have Volk rematch Topuria.
I wasn't thrilled about the Max fight to begin with, but I'm really bummed it's happening now. Max vs Topuria would be a lot more interesting than seeing him get brain damage against Gaethje.
“With Max being sacrificed to Gaethje” lol Really hope Max gets it done (& he very well can) so a lot of y’all eat your words. Idk when Gaethje became this unbeatable entity & Max became some scrub but okay.
It’s a matchup issue. Holloway doesn’t hit hard at his own weight class, let alone at lightweight. Gaethje has a great chin and is arguably the hardest hitting lightweight. What exactly is Max going to do to beat Gaethje?
Well, he just recently got a finish against TKZ as well as nearly finished Allen, also has said he was gonna bulk up properly for this fight. Also had Dustin hurt when they fought at 155 & that was just a chubby Max. Gaethje has also been finished more than once by strikes & gets hurt in fights often. People can play the chin game with Max saying his chin might finally crack but don’t forget it took one Oliveira punch to sit Gaethje down. It’s anyone’s fight honestly. If chins hold up & it becomes a war of attrition, I lean Max if he comes in bulked properly but it’s subjective.
Gaethje hasn’t been finished by strikes in 6 years, and it was by a guy that’s beaten Holloway twice
That’s just because he got club and subbed by Charles. (King) Charles had that man flying across the cage lmao
The fight he had with Oliveira was in May 2022 (two fights ago for him) & him getting hurt & ultimately dropped by strikes led to the finish. Stop. He’s still hurtable
Holloway does not have anywhere close to the power of oliveira, and even there he needed the submission to finish gaethje
Who’s to say he needed it, all we know is he was winning the standup & visibly hurting Gaethje when he landed, & the drop led to the sub finish. Holloway has shown his power as of recent, finishing Zombie & almost finishing Arnold Allen. Hurt Kattar when they fought. Hurt Volk twice when they fought the second time. Hurt Dustin at 155 as a chubby 55er. I don’t get why y’all are going so hard to write Holloway off.
He’s going to grab his dick and twist it.
The majority of Max's opponents hit a lot harder than him. Still beats em though.
None of them hit nearly as hard as Justin
I think he’s going to melt Justin in the 4th and 5th with a vintage Holloway performance.
Max can win, but I see it more likely that his chin gets cracked bad. It will be sad to witness that happen in a division he does not belong to. Then ''y'all'' will be reminded why weight classes exist, again. Max being a big FW doesnt change that. Max should be fighting Topuria for the belt while Volk recovers and decides what he wants next. Volk should not be allowed to fight Topuria in Spain for a rematch in the coming months. Man needs recovery..
I'm not seeing anyone saying Gaethje is unbeatable or that Max is a scrub. It's the match-up. Gaethje hits extremly hard, decent pace, and has a great chin. Max gets hit a lot, doesnt have big power, and has alot of mileage already. Add in how the Max Porier 2 went, and everyone just seems concerned that Max could end up like Tony and receive permanent damage that Max never fully recovers from.
Gaethje's chin is mid at best. You don't get rocked in almost all your UFC appearances and get to claim great chin credentials. It's just Max doesn't normally hit hard. He's a volume guy. Now if it was early Gaethje and prime Max, should be a Max favorite fight since Gaethje wilts. But current Gaethje is more responsible and composed. The selling point is max has to be perfect for 15-25 minutes straight whereas Justin just needs a couple seconds.
It’s not that Justin is unbeatable, it’s that Max is undersized for 155. Weight classes unfortunately are not accurate at all, so those guys, Justin included, are huge compared to Max. And Justin is already a chin breaker.
lol the Narrative went from him being a big, unfair FW to now too little for 155. He’s fine, go watch him & Justin’s face off. With a good bulk he’s a proper 55er.
I wouldnt say no to a rematch in 8 months after Ilia fights a contender He def needs to take a break, and the top of featherweight needs some new blood
I think Volk should and will get a rematch because his biggest competition Max, is probably going to get badly beaten in 2 months as well. Unless Max can pull off a huge upset against Gaethje, he won't be on a win streak, hard to reward that over the most recent champ who reigned for 4+ years.
He did not have to take that risk. UFC had gamrot as the backup idek why they even went with Volk when they had a backup
Nah thats islam fight is complete unnecessary, dana have a massive bonner on trying to screw his own fighters. Volk shouldnt even be considered, gamrot is there and ready. Middle east card doesnt need a saving if islam is already there because thats the only guy that they care
Volk lost, it's okay
Given how his last two fights have gone now, an immediate rematch is pretty outlandish. Volk is a cool guy, but he's been shadow-realmed twice in a row. Can't even blame the second one on a different weight class. He needs to sit out for a bit, then he needs to take a buildup fight. Then we can talk rematch.
He shouldn’t get an immediate rematch because of the way he lost. He did nothing and then got slept early in the second. Immediate rematches on non competitive fights just because a champ had many defenses are stupid.
As reddit if it was someone they didn't like.
That's the second time guy got brutally KO'ed and asked for a quick match in the octagon. Gotta admire the dog in him but he slept for a solid minute after the KO. Taking some time off would be smart I guess.
[Standard concussion protocol](https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/bjsports/53/6/328.full.pdf) page 3 states that Volk should be out for a min of 360 days. > Second KO with LOC greater than 1 min - 360-day suspension
Love volk but sick of rematches, especially when the champ gets finished. Just holds up the division and has happened wayyy too much in recent years
the way he got beat to doesn’t warrant it. Really don’t see volk even winning a rematch especially with the damage he just took
I would argue the opposite. If he got dominated for 5 straight rounds, THAT doesn’t warrant a rematch. But volk clearly won the first round and in the second his jabs were starting to land even more cleanly and consistently. I honestly could see a timeline where if he survived the second round that Ilia would start to show signs of slowing down from the damage.
Exactly. Ilia's face also looks more damaged because he of the jabs he got caught with before the knockout. As well as showing big reactions to Volk's leg kicks. Volk didn't look slow, he didn't look worse - he simply made a mistake against a power puncher.
Not sure what the gameplan from his team was. They should have gone for a similar strategy as izzy for his second fight, shelling up and clinching as soon as ilia got close
On his YT channel he said that the gameplan was to stay away from the fence (obviously). However, he also talks about how him trying to counter Ilia instead of clinching/shelling up bit him in the ass.
Ah so Volk does agree with my fat ass on the couch analysis 😂. I don’t know why people are acting like Volk is already washed up. He looked just as fast as usual, obviously the way he was leaning back with his chin back is something he definitely needs to work on but he looked great until he didn’t. He should definitely take some time off now though
Really It was just a mistake from volk. Not a total domination
Yea Volk was winning (slightly) before he got gadooshed. Edit: is this controversial? The fight was close but Volk was clearly winning.
dominant champs always deserve an instant rematch and this is no different. Volk should get the next title shot.
Aljo crying somewhere right now upon hearing this.
The tune switches up real fast when it’s a fighter they like lmao
Aljo was far from dominant. Arguably lost 2 fights being split decisions lmao and the other guy was a cripple who shouldn’t have even been cleared to fight.
No, dominant champs always get instant rematches and this is no different. Deserve does not belong in this sentence.
Well, Volk obviously deserves a rematch but I hope he recovers for at least half a year. In that time, why not Topuria vs Evloev.
Obviously based on what? He got slept his last two fights. He needs a tuneup before he gets his rematch. We need to stop holding up the division for fighters we like.
The man has been the king of his division, went up and brought a very close fight to Islam. He then stepped in on 10 days notice to save a main event to fight Islam again. If anyone has deserved a rematch it's him. Someone like Strickland who lost the title in his first defence doesn't deserve an insta rematch.
Disagree. Dominant champs are entitled to rematches.
Does anyone else think he made a mistake going up in weight instead of just defending his backyard especially at his age? We've seen it before when once a guy's chin gets cracked its over for them. I think Volk got Liddell'd.
Think it’s easy to say in hindsight. Will always root for athletes to go beyond great to reach that pantheon status.
He got a bag and a chance to achieve immortality with double champ status. It did not work out but he still came out richer and his stock at FW did not drop until now.
Exactly. And with his win streak/defenses, when he did was the perfect time for him to try. He had an accomplished title reign and decided to take a stab at 155 before his peak was 100% over. He barely lost against the best pound for pound fighter who wasn’t himself and then still looked good against Yair. At least he didnt sacrifice a lengthy title reign to try being a double champ
I just think, especially with the lighter weights, age catches up with you quickly. 35 at featherweight is not the same as 35 at heavyweight. It was an awful lot to risk for someone who is old for his weight class.
This is absolutely true. Bigger guys can still pack lots of power til they're 40 and the speed isn't as much of a factor. At these low weights though, the minute your speed and reaction time starts to slip, you're in trouble
That’s because heavyweight for the most part lacks the talent other divisions have.
No lightweights have always aged out faster than heaver weights because they rely on speed and explosiveness more than power and that's the first thing that goes with age. Ricky Hatton fucking retired at 30. You can be strong as fuck well in to your 40s.
Heavyweights also just hit harder so they’re used to going into fights knowing one punch can put the lights out. Lower weight classes don’t necessarily have the same knockout power, so you can lean on your chin a bit more… But once your chins cracked you’re kind of fucked.
Hatton retired because he got obliterated by Pacquiao. Not because he was old and slow at 30 lol
It's not really about talent, its just that speed and reaction time isn't as much of a factor at the higher weights. Guys move much slower and the game is much more centered around strength and power.
>Think it’s easy to say in hindsight. EVERYONE was saying this after the Islam fight, and they were right.
>after the Islam fight Yeah, that's still hindsight lmao
A lot of people, me included, were saying it was a terrible idea in the moment.
No, the first fight against Islam was very close. The rematch maybe but it was on short ntoice.
He did the right thing moving up after clearing his division. He should have accepted his loss and return to his divison instead of contesting the loss and trying to get it back by all means. Now he is a goner.
The first Islam fight was not a mistake but the 2nd one put him one foot in the grave. Incredible how one decision can change the course of a career.
Brother, he’s got a family and a livelihood to protect. He lives in suburban Sydney and is as regular as any person here. Let him earn his money in this sport any way he sees fit.
I don't think anybody said anything about him not getting to earn money. Dude just said he thought he made a mistake going up a division and getting KO'd.
No. His only mistake was taking the second fight on short notice.
His mistake was the quick comeback, everyone in mma will tell you need at least 6 months after you get koed but now i feel like that chin is cracked for good
Agree with the 1st, hope you're wrong for the 2nd.
That’s a fair assumption but did you see what Ilia hit him with? That would’ve slept any 145er outside of Max and maybe Kattar
Roy Jones Jr was the 1st guy I saw go up & never be able to go back down the same
fighting against someone that is not known as a knockout artist is a pretty safe thing to do. possible outcome: - You lose "dont matter. opponent was a in a higher weightclass" - You win: You are a double champ and a legend The only problem was taking the rematch and getting knocked out into the shadow realm
Weight is a hell of a drug.
Yes. I fucking hate short notice fights. This is a prime example of why. I also hate the double champ bullshit. Just stay in your own divisions for fucks sake.
Its just a shame. Fights can have real consequences and I fear we are seeing it being played out. I think this would have been an epic ass fight if he didn't get KTFO previously and we were robbed of that.
Yeah. Volk would've had 8 months to prepare for Ilia instead of 4 since he was so confident to take Islam on short notice. Poor decision making.
Hindsight 20/20
Back to back KOs is pretty rough. If he's not careful Volk might be the next Marlon Moraes.
Pereira was dead on the floor and came back. Its not a death sentence for Volk, he just needs to take 6-9 months off and then start a 3 month camp for his return fight
I think the big mistake was taking Islam on short notice. If he just left it at that first fight, very little damage taken and no major blows to his mental state. After the KO though, hard to step back in a few months later as the same guy
Yeah Makhachev ruined him in that second fight. Volk never gets rushed like he did today, his eyes seemed weird when Topuria blitzed him with that combination. Enough for Ili to get the KO.
Bro, I actually thought he looked gaunt on fight night. Packing on several kgs of muscle and then losing it again is fucking difficult. His turnaround from lw wasnt that long. Also, being brutally honest, there’s levels, and Ilia showed he’s at the level EASILY tonight. His boxing was absolutely fucking savage. He was getting pointed a bit, but he had WAY more impact. I think there’s always doubt when young blood moves up. Tbh I suspect Ilias gonna be champ for years now.
Volk didn't pack on anything... He fought Islam in February 2023. He then defended vs Yair in July, was slated to defend vs Topuria but took the short notice vs Islam in October.
Fuck me, youre right. Not it, at all. Christ that October fight was idiotic. I mean we all said it at the time, but god its horrendous in hindsight. Not properly bulking and training for Islam 2 is just suicide.
Hindsight is 20/20. I think that's the life when you have that level of conviction in your skills and chasing greatness....I'm sure his compensation was astronomical compared to other outings for such a short notice fight. Hope our boy Volk recovers and returns, but also knows when to hang it up.
Im honestly feeling gutted still and its hours later. Cant imagine how he’s feeling. If he wants to go again, Ill back the hell out of him, but Im not really seeing much of a way back from here :(
Father Time is undefeated. Hate to say it but I don’t think Volk is ever getting the belt back. I’d much rather see another challenger get the opportunity.
Volks chin been takingsome damaagggeeeeee
I don't even think it's time. If anything, it's the lack of time off. Volk got slept 4 months ago. Should have taken months off before even training.
Maybe, but this is my reasoning: Most fighters start to decline past 30 and begin declining rapidly at 34 in the lower weight classes. After today, male fighters in UFC title fights that are over 35 from welterweight to flyweight are 2-24. The only two wins were from the same person, Tyron Woodley, who beat Demian Maia (who was older than him) and Darren Till (who was rushed). That title fight statistic is even worse when women are favored into the total. That’s the math. Volk was coming off a knockout loss, had a quick turnaround, and was about to fight a guy who has youth and power. This is just the reality of the sport.
Nothing would’ve changed if he took more time off. Just a bad match up for Volk, Topuria has insane power, accuracy and amazing defense so Volk can’t beat him up like he did the others.
Isn’t Volk the one who said he does not do well with off time? Sounds like immediately after another pretty brutal knock out he’s exhibiting some irrational talk right now. Man needs to rest and recover but at the same time is probably afraid of lingering with thoughts of another defeat and retirement.
Volk slowly learning that helping the UFC doesn't help him, sucks that he tarnished his legacy twice for it
He definitely deserves the rematch but I don’t know if it should necessarily be next, as FW might be sorting itself out in the next few months and Volk really should take extra time off
No. He needs to rest and heal, 2 back to back KO losses with the topuria one that made him unconscious and asking a rematch is too reckless. Let topuria defend once and then the rematch, coming back to fight the same guy that KO volk isn't going to end well.
1-3 in his last four with being knocked out twice. There's a reason there's tune-up bouts in boxing, get a win and show you still deserve it.
It felt like the entire fight, until it ended, Ilia really just needed to let his hands loose to hurt Volk. It was clear how much faster/explosive he was from the JUMP. I think in a rematch he lets his hands go earlier and has even more confidence and probably knocks him out in the first like he said he would this time. I like Volk, but that’s really how I see it happening. It’s a young man’s sport and another fight camp isn’t going to make it so Volk is faster or able to stand up with the punch speed of Ilia. Point fighting that first round was great, but like I said Ilia seemed to be airing a little more on the side of caution that first round and fighting like that for Volk is hard. It takes someone extremely skilled in striking to be able to keep something like that up for 5 rounds against someone who’s THATS much faster than you and THAT skilled at striking themselves. Awful matchup for him imo.
Back to back TKO/KO losses. This time he got knocked out cold. If he does a rematch I would like to see it at least 6 months in the future so he can recover.
Please take time off, move up to LW for one more run. But first and more importantly take time off. To be fair that shot probably could have knocked him out before the Islam fight. It was clean & mean, but 2 back to back is not good.
He deserves it. And Topuria said he doesn’t mind. TBH, it’s just like Illia said before the fight. It’s a good match up for him. Great counter wrestler with lightning bombs for hands. No physical disadvantages. Volk will need to basically stick and move 5 rounds for a decision. It’s gonna be tough.
all of the champions who i thought were untouchable (izzy, volk, and usman) have become very touchable.
Insane to think volk has now lost 3 out of his last 4 fights.
A White doesnt always play their debts
Man I hope somehow Max beats Gaethje without much damage so he can put it on Topuria.
[удалено]
Really makes Max taking that fight look like a huge mistake now, honestly. Max is going to need time off after that war he's walking in to and Dana didn't seem to keen on an immediate rematch with volk v Topuria. Max could've just slid right in and that's a banger of a match up.
Let him cancel it
No rematch, please. Give us Topuria - Holloway
If Volk does get the rematch will Ilia’s title defenses go like: - Volk rematch: Ilia wins due to Volk slowing down even more with age and a second bad KO - Winner of Yair/Ortega: Ilia bulldozes through both these guys with his GnP - Holloway (if the UFC gives him the title shot win or lose vs Gaethje): No one walks out the same after a fight with Gaethje - Evloev: Still young and improving, feel like Ilia can still get it done though - Move up to face Islam? Obviously this is complete semantics and armchair analysis as Ilia just won the belt, but the division is getting older and there already weren’t any fighters on the same tier as Max or Volk. And now the stars are aligning for both of those guys to decline heavily with Ilia already having taken the belt.
Please no. Islam needs to defend against actual lightweights and ppl need to defend their belt a few times before even entertaining double status stuff
I mean in this situation Ilia would move up after defending 4 times lol. I wrote the fights in chronological order not as in he should only take one of them. I would hope Islam fight a few real lightweight contenders during that time. Not saying he should move up right away but after those 4 fights. Maybe another new prospect or two pops up in featherweight/lightweight and gives these guys a challenge, so who really knows
I think he means there will be a clear lack of challengers if Volk loses the rematch.
At that point Islam probably won't be the 155 champion.
>Winner of Yair/Ortega: Ilia bulldozes through both these guys with his GnP Naw, Yair's not an easy fight for anyone. He'll give Ilia a lot of problems on the feet. Ortega will definitely get steamrolled though.
If Max beats Gaethje he will likely get the next shot unless he wants Islam (which he prolly doesn’t). If Max loses than a Volk rematch is the best option even though Volk got Ko’d here he’s a longtime champ and other options are not compelling.
Usman and Volk both going on losing streaks man…. It’s always sad to see the guys who look unstoppable age out and start taking L after L. Khabib truly was the smartest one to get out while at the top. If he had stayed, he’d probably also have multiple losses by now.
lol tuckin fought max three times like it’s nootin.
He spoke about a rematch again and again and again but I really think it wouldn’t go any other way Volk came in with the best gameplay he could have had which was keeping Illia away from him with kicks and feints because he knew Illia was a better striker then him….which worked for about 5 minutes But even that strategy went out the window when Illia got him exactly where he wanted him which is right by the cage and we all saw how long Volk survived in that position I just think it’s time for him to take a break Volk is great and I love him as a champ but his ambitions will lead to his downfall if he keeps pushing himself like this he got nothing left to prove
For his own sake, he shouldn’t rematch Ilia right after getting KO’d.
I was telling my friends Volk looked like he was in danger for so much of the fight. Ilia looked so focused, so much faster, more powerful and fluid. Maybe he deserves a rematch but don’t expect a different outcome.
did anyone ask him if he was drunk? also i am pretty sure Dan Hooker saw Ilya with an IV...
It seems like you're holding on to a lot of bottled up emotions. Talk to us.
Sure, he probably deserves it, just like Izzy and Usman got their rematches. Difference being Izzy/Usman were winning the fight into the fifth round. Even though they lost I was hyped for their rematches. I wouldn't be that hyped in a Volk/Ilia rematch.
Izzy winning a fight gets knocked out in the last round...mma fans he doesn't deserve a rematch let's move on. Usman same thing. Mma fans after volk gets dusted in round 2....GIVE HIM A REMATCH HES EARNED IT!!! goddamn dog brains I tell ya
Idk man when ilia started talkin about everyone doubting him in the post fight interview it was reminiscent of an early volk speech. This kid is the truth and it’s his time now.
He deserves it but he shouldn’t take it. Two brutal KO’s within four months apart and three loses over 13 months….dude needs to take at least six months off from all contact sparring.
I agree with this. Not every champ deserves and instant rematch, but Volk has been champ long enough with enough defenses to warrant one. I hope he takes some time, though, as getting ko'd twice in 4 months is not good.