Ex-UFC champion shares keys to victory for Alexander Volkanovski and Ilia Topuria in upcoming title fight
Aljamains Sterling recently shared his thoughts on the upcoming Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria featherweight title fight at UFC 298. The highly anticipated event is set to go down this weekend at the Honda Center in California.
'The Great' is widely considered among the greatest featherweight champions in promotional history and boasts one of the most incredible resumes ever. Undefeated in the 145-pound division, Volkanovski won the title against Max Holloway at UFC 245 and defended it successfully five times.
He's now looking to secure his sixth title defense against the undefeated Georgian-Spanish fighter, who has a perfect 14-0 professional record. Topuria outpointed Youssef Zalal on his UFC debut in October 2020 and quickly tasted stardom thanks to his dominant fighting style and firebrand personality.
Ahead of the exciting championship title between these two featherweights, the former UFC bantamweight champion shared his thoughts on how they could capitalize on their strengths to win the bout. In a recent video uploaded to X, Sterling outlined their paths to victory and said:
"I think the keys to his [Volkanovski] victory is using a lot of footwork, using his feints, staying long - using those daddy long legs arms that he's got for a 5'6" maybe 5'5" fighter. He's got his overhand right, his jabs, his one-twos, and those inside leg kicks... Then we have Ilia Topuria using that 'Matador' boxing, ripping that liver shot. We can't forget Ilia's devastating calf kicks."
Israel Adesanya predicts Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria title bout at UFC 298
Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya recently shared his two cents on the Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria featherweight title fight at UFC 298 this weekend.
Adesanya and Volkanovski share a close relationship and often train together. In the past, the Nigerian-born Kiwi has also called Volkanovski the "greatest of all time" in MMA. While 'The Great' trains under coach Joe Lopez at Freestyle MMA in Australia, he also sharpens his tools at City Kickboxing Gym with head coach Eugene Bareman.
Given their friendship, it's no surprise that Adesanya backed Volkanovski to beat Topuria and secure another title defense. In a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, 'The Last Stylebender' predicted Topuria getting finished in the latter rounds and said:
"Alexander 'The Great' Volkanovski. I'm going to go late stoppage, round four. Yeah, round four, KO or TKO. I think he's just going to exhaust him [Topuria]. It's different when you're in the championship rounds, but you have Alexander Volkanovski in your face."
Catch Israel Adesanya's comments below (12:44):