by Dana White (AP Photo/John Locher)
UFC president Dana White told reporters that the promotion would not contradict former UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski’s desire for a title fight in his native Australia, and that appears to be the case.
Volkanovski wanted to face Ilia Topuria again to regain his title.
The UFC will face UFC 312 in Sydney on February 9th, but Topuria will be unavailable, so it looks like Volkanovski will face No. 3 ranked Diego Lopes.
Australian MMA journalist Benny P reported on X on Wednesday that Volkanovski vs. Lopes was scheduled for UFC 312.
Barring a rematch with Topuria, Volkanovski vs. Lopes is the next best featherweight fight. There is no indication in the report whether it would be for the interim title, but it would make sense as Volkanovski said earlier this month he wanted to fight for gold.
The UFC could also decide to make this an interim title fight, as Topuria likely has a desire to fight on its card. However, the champion has earned the right to rest and recuperation.
After his knockout win over Max Holloway at UFC 308, the UFC likely wants Topuria’s next title defense to take place at a soccer stadium in his second home country of Spain. Volkanovski said he would like to fight Topuria in such a place.
However, he must defeat Lopes before he can take advantage of this opportunity. Lopes has been on fire for the last two years and is as active as anyone in the UFC.
He is on a five-fight win streak and has fought six times since May 2023. Lopes’ only loss in the UFC came in his promotional debut against undefeated contender Movsar Evloev in May 2023.
It’s an exciting time for the featherweight division, with a dominant champion in position to dictate his next fight. Under him, the division is undergoing some upheaval that could lay the foundation for the emergence of new star power at 145 pounds. After the Volkanovski-Lopes winner, Evloev could be next to fight for the title.
The undefeated Russian will face Aljamain Sterling at UFC 310 in December. The winner of this fight has the best chance of moving into the top five, and with Holloway moving permanently to lightweight, his spot in the rankings will be filled by someone else.
Yair Rodriguez has been inactive since February when he lost by submission to Brian Ortega. Rodriguez has lost two fights in a row, so his next fight could be against someone below him. A potential opponent for Rodriguez could be No. 7 Arnold Allen.
This fight could be a make-or-break fight for Rodriguez, but another chance at promotion for Allen. In previous attempts to qualify for a title shot, Allen was defeated by Holloway and Evloev.
The UFC has not officially announced any fights for the card, but it looks like a fight between Volkanovski and Lopes will land on the main card. A big women’s bantamweight or flyweight bout could fall into the co-main event slot.
Stay tuned as we wait for more information on UFC 311 and 312.
