THE UFC lands in Miami Beach this weekend with their best fight card of the year so far, where a new champion will be crowned and opportunity knocks for one of the UK’s biggest stars.
Alexander Volkanovski will need to defy history in order to become a two-time featherweight champion, as no man over 35 has ever captured UFC gold in the lighter weight classes.
Meanwhile, Paddy ‘The Baddy’ Pimblett is one victory away from being considered a genuine title contender in the lightweight division.
THE GREAT
Volkanovski, 36, will face red-hot Brazilian Diego Lopes for the 145lb strap in the main event.
Lopes, 30, is unbeaten in his last five fights with three first round finishes and back-to-back wins over ranked Dan Ige and former title contender Brian Ortega.
Volkanovski was being talked about as the greatest featherweight the sport has ever seen two years ago. But he’s lost three of his last four fights, two via knockout and all inside 12 months.
The Aussie dared to be great, losing twice to lightweight king Islam Makhachev, then returned and was finished by Ilia Topuria costing him the featherweight belt.
Now refreshed after a year away, he had hoped to face Topuria in a return, but the Spaniard has moved to 155lbs, leaving Volk and #1 contender Lopes to clash for the vacated belt.
THE BADDY
Pimblett faces undoubtedly his biggest test in the Sunshine State.
Michael Chandler is a veteran star of the sport and a former multiple-time champion himself, albeit outside of the Octagon.
Both have had had six fights inside the UFC and between them they’ve bagged 9 bonuses.
Yet whilst Paddy, 30, has remained undefeated whilst climbing up the rankings, 38-year-old Chandler has won just twice, albeit against nothing but top-ranked opposition.
After spending two years on the sidelines waiting for a Conor McGregor fight, the American finally accepted the Irishman’s retirement and returned only to lose on points to Charles Oliveira in November.
Ranked #6 in the world, Chandler is a significant step up for Paddy, whose first-round submission win over King Green in Manchester last summer raised him to #12.
With a huge global profile and a personality as big as his haircut, Pimblett is the kind of young star the UFC wants to invest in: a future pay-per-view attraction.
AND NEW…
Lopes arrives in Miami with real momentum and with 10 knockouts and 12 submissions on his resume; his fully rounded skillset makes him dangerous everywhere.
Two years ago, Volk was running through everybody and this matchup would have been stacked heavily in his favour.
But Lopes’ timing to get to the top could be perfect as Volk struggles both mentally and physically with his aging body.
As for Pimblett, the risk comes in the form of Chandler’s heavy hands and relentless approach.
But the Scouser should be too long, too slick and too technical on the ground for the veteran to survive the distance.
TIP: Lopes (6/1) and Pimblett (12/5), both via Submission (22/1)
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