Diego Lopes fires back at critics questioning his cardio ahead of Alexander Volkanovski fight at UFC 314: "People have short memories"
Diego Lopes has not entered the octagon since last September when he defeated Brian Ortega via unanimous decision at UFC 306. The No.3-ranked featherweight is set to make his return to the octagon next month when he faces Alexander Volkanovski for the vacant title at UFC 314.
He recently fired back at critics who have questioned his cardio ahead of the first title bout of his UFC career. Speaking to Danny Segura of Habelmos MMA, Lopes stated:
"I don’t get it. People forget things. People have short memories. They only want to remember what they want to remember, and that’s fine. I get it. A lot of those people are fans of those fighters. I’m fighting, so they will go ahead and say I lack cardio to fight them."
Lopes added:
"I think he might go in there and look to do a mix of his game because a lot of people are still complaining that I might not have cardio for five rounds. People are still hanging on to what happened in the fight against Dan Ige, that I slowed down. But that’s okay. People have mouths, and they’ll say whatever they want. I’m ready for Volkanovski’s best version, and I’m ready to show my best version."
Check out Diego Lopes' full comments on his cardio below (20:08):
Lopes noted that facing Ige at 160 pounds affected his cardio during the bout. He added that he believes he redeemed himself with his performance in the third round against Brian Ortega.
Alexander Volkanovski weighs in on facing Diego Lopes instead of Ilia Topuria
Alexander Volkanovski appeared to be in position to rematch Ilia Topuria for the featherweight title. Instead, 'El Matador' opted to vacate the belt and move to lightweight, opening the door for Diego Lopes to face 'The Great' at UFC 314. Speaking to Brett Okamoto of ESPN, the No.1-ranked featherweight was asked if he wished he was facing Topuria, responding:
"That's what we thought it was going to be. I did the face off so, originally, early, that's what I wanted and then it got to a point where I didn't know what was happening and you're hearing him even talk about maybe moving up. I'm like, is this just negotations, what's going on? So, I didn't think too much in it so we're still game planning for Ilia and then you're hearing, could it maybe be Lopes? So, by this stage, I'm like just give me anyone now."
Check out Alexander Volkanovski's comments on facing Diego Lopes below:
Volkanovski added that while he wants to get the win back against Topuria, he also wants to prove he can beat the new generation of fighters. He will have the opportunity to do so against Lopes, who he described as young, hungry, and on a tear.