I could stir the pot and not mention him, but how can you not - Alexander Volkanovski includes Conor McGregor in his featherweight Mount Rushmore
Alexander Volkanovski has admitted that he cannot leave out Conor McGregor in his list of best-ever featherweights in the UFC.
In an interview with The All-Star's John Hyon Ko, Volkanovski said that 'The Notorious' has to be the fourth face of his featherweight Mount Rushmore:
"You're going to have to say, Conor McGregor. I mean, the four champions, how else could you say it? At the end of the day, that's just real talk. I could sit there and stir the pot and not mention him. But, like you know, probably piss him off. He was the one who dethroned [Jose] Aldo. He has beaten Max [Holloway]. Obviously, that was very early into Max's career, that's why it's probably not talked about as much, but it would have been good for him to stay in the division."
The list included former champions Max Holloway and Jose Aldo, along with Volkanovski himself. 'The Great' has been dominant in the featherweight division with a 12-0 record, winning the title along the way in 2019. Since then, he has defended the belt successfully in his next four fights while ascending to the top of the P4P rankings.
@TheNotoriousMMA No one could beat Jose Aldo for 10 years. Conor McGregor did it in 13 seconds.
We had a new Featherweight King. https://t.co/2aZRveNsY5
McGregor stunned the world when he beat Aldo with the fastest title fight knockout in UFC history\, sleeping the Brazilian in just 13 seconds at UFC 194 to win the featherweight title. In November 2016, it was announced that Conor McGregor vacated the featherweight belt, and interim titleholder Jose Aldo was promoted to undisputed champion.
Watch Alexander Volkanovski name his featherweight Mount Rushmore below:
Alexander Volkanovski opens up on potentially fighting Conor McGregor in the UFC
McGregor has been out of action for over a year after suffering a leg injury against Dustin Poirier and is eyeing a return to the octagon. Alexander Volkanovski gave his thoughts on a potential blockbuster clash with McGregor, even willing to move to welterweight to make the fight possible.
During an interview with Submission Radio in March this year, 'The Great' said that a win over McGregor would be a big accomplishment for his legacy. The Irishman is the only former featherweight champion who is yet to face the Aussie:
"I mean like obviously it would be 155[lbs]. I guess I would just say these things because at the end of the day I would fight at 170 if that was like the deal breaker like, [McGregor saying] 'No, I'm not fighting unless it's at welterweight'... Let's remember he is the only other featherweight champion that I haven't beat... And then me fighting even in a different weight division is probably worse for me but if I go out there and do that I still feel like that comes into play for my legacy in the whole featherweight division."
While Alexander Volkanovski has looked unstoppable in the featherweight division, a fight against the Irishman would certainly be one of the most highly anticipated fights in recent history. Additionally, with the Australian in his prime, McGregor will have to push himself to the limit to edge out a potentially historic win in the UFC.
Check out the interview with Alexander Volkanovski below: