Alexander Volkanovski proved he is levels above all the other featherweights in UFC, by defeating Max Holloway for a third time, at UFC 276.
Volkanovski was the better man throughout the five rounds in Las Vegas on Saturday night, as his strikes were hard and constant and Holloway could not keep up.
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There was no doubt that the champion was the winner, unlike in the pair's second meeting in 2020, and he almost certainly won every round.
The challenger was busted up early in the fight and took a hell of a beating, but unlike his usual style could not land much, if any of his attack.
After the fifth round finished, Volkanovski began celebrating straightaway, knowing he had dominated from the off, and ran past the commentary booth asking 'what's next?'
The answer to that question will not be easy to answer, with 'The Great,' looking every bit his nickname and no one looking close to his level in the division.
Volkanovski won the featherweight title back in 2019, when he ended Holloway's run as champion with a unanimous points decision win over the Hawaian.
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Holloway got a rematch straight away thanks to his previous record, of winning 14 fights at the weight in-a-row, with only a loss to Dustin Poirier at lightweight in between.
The second fight was much closer and there was controversy over the Australian's split decision victory, making a third fight inevitable at some point.
Both men had two fights between their second and third meetings with each other, the champ defeating Brian Ortega and Chan Sung Jung, celebrating the win over Ortega by watching an NFL match and getting a huge ovation, whilst the challenger beat Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodríguez.
After defeating the Korean Zombie back in April, the Australian called out his whole division, saying, "Everyone in my division, I’ve been saying it for a while now.... get your s**t together.
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“Earn that No. 1 spot and you get it. If not, you are going to f***ing miss out. It’s that simple.”
The 33-year-old paid respect to his opponent after the fight on Saturday calling him an 'absolute beast,' before putting the lightweight division on notice.
Volkanovski said he wanted to fight Charles Oliveira, or whoever next won the title, after the Brazilian had to vacate it, claiming his own division couldn't keep him busy enough.
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Featured Image Credit: UFCTopics: UFC, MMA, Max Holloway
