5 reasons why Alexander Volkanovski should get more respect
Alexander Volkanovski has had a life full of challenges, most of which he has overcome with pure dominance. At UFC 266 tonight, 'The Great' will be called up to test yet again against Brian Ortega. Although he established himself as a pound-for-pound great and became a UFC featherweight champion in 2019, he deserves credit for way more than that.
Alexander Volkanovski's UFC debut came in 2016 and yet UFC 266 is the first time that he will headline a UFC event. It's still better late than never because his second title defense, which will be against 'T-City', should help the Aussie significantly increase his respect in the MMA community.
#ANDSTILL
#UFC266 top 3 fights…who you got?? @ufc @UFC_AUSNZ https://t.co/nMpYOl2VPQ
Ahead of the much-awaited bout, let's take a look at five reasons why Alexander Volkanovski should get more respect.
#5. Alexander Volkanovski is 19-0 across the past eight years
Alexander Volkanovski started his MMA career with a local Australian MMA promotion in 2012. Bolting to a 3-0 start, he picked up two welterweight championships with different organizations in his second and third fights. He was stopped in his tracks in his fourth MMA bout with a TKO loss in the Australian Fighting Championship welterweight tournament quarterfinal.
But 'The Great' displayed heart and skill by going on a legendary 19-fight winning streak, including 12 stoppages. Following his sole loss in 2013, Alexander Volkanovski has remained undefeated for eight years and counting. When he signed with the UFC in 2016, he had already acquired six titles from fighting in three different weight classes and various MMA promotions.
He competed in the welterweight and lightweight divisions before settling into the featherweight category. While switching through different classes is an achievement on its own, Volkanovski proved to be much ahead of his competition by conquering gold in every category he fought.
Alexander Volkanovski won the welterweight championship with Cage Conquest and Roshambo MMA in 2013. A year later, he won the Roshambo MMA lightweight title and then moved on to winning the featherweight straps with AFC, PXC, and Wollongong Wars in 2015 and 2016.