If Alexander Volkanovski beats Ilia Topuria, he would be the first fighter below WW to win a championship bout in the 35+ age group

[Davidjacksonjones]

Just been reading some MMA articles and found this interesting

Will Volk overcome the curse of these statistics and pull it off? I believe he can. Volk bless

https://www.si.com/fannation/mma/ufc/alexander-volkanovski-fights-2-opponents-at-ufc-294#:~:text=Fighters%20aged%2035%20and%20over,Demian%20Maia%20and%20Darren%20Till.

Fighters aged 35 and over - in men's divisions below middleweight - have a record of 2-22 in title fights (including interim). The sole individual to secure victories at the age of 35 or older while weighing under 185 pounds is Tyron Woodley, against Demian Maia and Darren Till.

UFC fighters aged 35+ years in title fights below Middleweight (Can also add in Islam Volk 2 as well since Volk turned 35 by then)

 

[Contempt]

Cool, another achievement for him to tick off the list.

 

[dildos]

volk is goat.

 

[davidlemonparty]

Volk is different though. Started mma later in life, has less mileage than his peers, and has a functional raw athleticism that differs from others.
so I agree he is gonna bomb at some point, but if anyone is the guy to break the trend he is a prime candidate

 

[Flower2dPeople]

Wait til Erik Silva hits his prime at 43.

 

[ILove4MinutesHyuna]

Khabib really is the smartest fighter of all time.

 

[Larzon]

Khabib really is the smartest fighter of all time.

Even UFC money goes a long way in those shitholes

 

[HatKick]

I was optimistic but I'm worried about his drinking. An elite athlete shouldn't be drinking every day for a month in or out of camp. Especially in his mid 30's at the end of his prime. Sheesh Volk, how could you do it?

 

[Oz.Pride]

Volk is different though. Started mma later in life, has less mileage than his peers, and has a functional raw athleticism that differs from others.
so I agree he is gonna bomb at some point, but if anyone is the guy to break the trend he is a prime candidate

Came here to say this.

 

[Khalex Chimaira]

Normally I'd say yes, but he got brutally KO'd a few months ago and Ilia has power in his hands. Would be awesome if he pulled it off tho

 

[World eater]

In Volk we trust.
Probably makes it look easy as well.

 

[Lee Danger]

“It’s not the years, honey. It’s the mileage.”

 

[Dr Fong]

Volk is different though. Started mma later in life, has less mileage than his peers, and has a functional raw athleticism that differs from others.
so I agree he is gonna bomb at some point, but if anyone is the guy to break the trend he is a prime candidate

30 pro fights (1 boxing). In year 12 of his career. Has taken 2 outright KOs. Been dropped several times. That's plenty of miles for an MMA fighter. Holloway has had a longer career but has 32 fights for comparison.

You think all these other older lighter weight class guys had 55 fights and 20-year careers before they lost their belts? Most of them had less fights than Volk and similar time in the game.

Tons of guys who have been around forever have had less fights than him. And tons of guys had shorter careers before they were past their used by dates.

There's absolutely nothing about Volk's record that suggests he is extra equipped to defeat Father Time.

 

[Mammothman]

I'm really rooting for Volk, would be fun to watch Topuria getting humbled.

 

[fortheo]

I was optimistic but I'm worried about his drinking. An elite athlete shouldn't be drinking every day for a month in or out of camp. Especially in his mid 30's at the end of his prime. Sheesh Volk, how could you do it?

Did you watch the interview?

 

[PrideNverDies]

Sounds like you listed a great reason why he loses OP

 

[kingghidrah]

Name: The Korean Zombie

 

[Skarsgard]

Normally I'd say yes, but he got brutally KO'd a few months ago and Ilia has power in his hands. Would be awesome if he pulled it off tho

Bryce Mitchell got brutally KO'd. Volk got caught, but he was up and responsive pretty quickly.

 

[HatKick]

Did you watch the interview?

Nah I trust Sherdog threat titles

 

[Dana's Conscience]

It's why I'm putting money on Ilia. It's only happened once at WW too (twice if you count Woodley/Maia, but they were both over 35+, so that doesn't count). I won money betting on Leon when he fought Colby based on this stat.