‘Winner fights McGregor’: Alex Volkanovski eyes up multimillion-dollar bout with UFC 303 offer
With Conor McGregor casting doubt in the minds of the UFC world after he pulled out of the UFC 303 press call this week, Alex Volkanovski has offered to step in on late notice, once again.
UFC
Don't miss out on the headlines from UFC. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Alexander Volkanovski will offer to replace Conor McGregor in the UFC 303 main event if the Irishman pulls out.
However, the Aussie wants a shot at “The Notorious” in what would be the biggest fight in Australian combat sports history if McGregor beats Michael Chandler.
In his first fight in nearly three years, McGregor is scheduled to fight Chandler in Las Vegas in the UFC 303 main event on June 30.
There are fears about whether the fight will go ahead after McGregor abruptly pulled out of a press conference this week.
More than 10,000 free tickets had been snapped up in less than four minutes for the first media event of the promotional build-up in McGregor’s home town of Dublin.
The UFC was forced to cancel the entire event and Chandler has since left his training camp in Florida and returned to his home in Tennessee.
After days of radio silence, McGregor sparked further confusion by posting a photo of himself in a doctors’ office on Thursday.
If McGregor can’t fight, Volkanovski is willing to step in and fight Chandler.
“If someone had to save the day, you would think it would have to be me, right?” Volkanovski said.
“I’ve put it out there and I’ve always told them that if they’re ever in this situation, you can always call on me and see what’s up.
“(Chandler’s) still a big name, it’s still a big card, a big event and I’d say the winner fights Conor McGregor too – I just came up with that now. You’re talking me into it.
“But money does talk. A lightweight fight – a save-the-day type of fight – it could happen.”
The Aussie has form in this area after getting up off the couch on 11 days’ notice for a rematch against Islam Makhachev in a lightweight title fight last October.
That fight didn’t go to plan when Volkanovski was knocked out in one round.
However, Volkanovski said he was in better physical and mental condition after he just finished a training camp in Thailand.
“That was a little bit of a rough patch but I’m very happy,” he said. “I’ve just got back from Thailand and that’s fired me up.
“If you had asked me two weeks ago, I wouldn’t even have been thinking of it. Now I’m getting that itch.
“If a call came through now, I guess we’d be having a good discussion.”
Volkanovski and McGregor also have history.
“The Notorious” was on the sidelines for most of Volk’s legendary featherweight title reign but rarely let a month go by without taking shots at the Aussie.
“There’s that history, we were both featherweight champions and we fought some similar opponents,” Volkanovski said.
“He’s not going to like people calling me the featherweight GOAT and I’m sure every time he heard that it would have stung him.
“So if there was an opportunity for him to try and take that glory, I’m sure he would.”
Despite his inactivity, McGregor remains the UFC’s most marketable star and its biggest money-spinner.
A fight between the 35-year-old Irishman and Volkanovski would rival some of the most high-profile boxing matches as the biggest fight in Australian combat sports history.
Regardless of the widespread uncertainty, Volkanovski still thinks McGregor will fight at UFC 303.
That means he will instead focus on either a featherweight title rematch against Ilia Topuria or a lightweight blockbuster later in the year.
Volkanovski said his next fight at featherweight would be for the title after he lost it to Topuria in February.
The UFC is rumoured to be interested in putting Topuria in with former champion Max Holloway in the second half of this year.
Volkanovski said he was willing to wait to fight the winner – possibly at Madison Square Garden in November – but would take a lightweight fight instead if neither Topuria nor Holloway was ready.
“My next fight at featherweight will be for the title, that’s clear,” he said. “It’s just when and where.
“There are whispers about Ilia and Max, and I don’t have a problem with that.
“But if they fight later, I don’t want to wait around until March or April next year.”
That’s why Volkanovski mentioned Dustin Poirier as a potential lightweight opponent this week.
Just days before his UFC 302 title fight against Islam Makhachev last week, Poirier said he would be interested in a big-money bout with Volkanovski.
“I think I saw that pop up, so that’s why I thought, ‘yeah, maybe we could do something’,” Volk said.
“There are a couple of fun fights at lightweight and that’s why I put Dustin’s name in the hat.
“Maybe we could get something happening because I want to stay active. I want to fight.”
More Coverage
Originally published as ‘Winner fights McGregor’: Alex Volkanovski eyes up multimillion-dollar bout with UFC 303 offer
Murder, PEDs, addiction: Rountree’s road from Boy to Man to UFC 307
A murdered father who managed Boyz II Men, drug bans and fast food addictions – nothing has been conventional about Khalil Rountree Jr’s path to UFC 307.
UFC star’s jaw-dropping body transformation
A UFC star has shown off his insane body transformation that has seen him go from being overweight to having a Hulk-like figure.