Yair Rodriguez wants Alex Volkanovski for his next fight – even if Aussie loses at UFC 284 in Perth
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Mexican Octagon star Yair Rodriguez wants Alex Volkanovski NEXT, even if the Australian king of the 4-pound pounder loses his lightweight battle with Islam Makhachev
- UFC star Yair Rodriguez wants to fight Alex Volkanovski
- Rodriguez thinks she’ll break up with Josh Emmett on Sunday
- Mexicano faces Emmett for interim featherweight title
Mexican UFC contender Yair Rodriguez is confident he will walk away with the interim featherweight belt at UFC 284, and he is looking forward to stepping into the Octagon with Alex Volkanovski as soon as it can be arranged afterwards.
The No. 2-ranked featherweight in the UFC faces Josh Emmett in Perth on Sunday just before Volkanovski’s champion vs. champion fight against Islam Makhachev, and the flashy 30-year-old is predicting a short night for his opponent.
Mexican UFC contender Yair Rodriguez (pictured against Max Holloway) is confident he’ll walk away with the interim featherweight belt at UFC 284, and he’s looking forward to stepping into the Octagon with Alex Volkanovski as soon as it can be arranged afterwards.
The No. 2-ranked UFC featherweight faces Josh Emmett in Perth on Sunday just before Volkanovski’s champion vs. champion fight against Islam Makhachev, and the flashy 30-year-old predicts a short night for his opponent (Volkanovski in the photo )
Both men are primarily strikers, but Rodríguez believes he has more tools to get the job done.
‘He is a very good opponent, he is an explosive fighter. But I don’t think he’s going the distance. I think he will end up in the third round,” Rodriguez told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I don’t care if it’s a kick or a punch. There will be vacancies, it’s a question of how quickly I can take advantage of these situations.’
‘If he wants to take it to the floor, there’s a good chance I can send it too.’
Rodriguez would like to see Volkanovski become a two-division champion on Sunday, but is interested in a fight with him no matter what happens in the matchup with Makhachev.
Alex is not avoiding anyone. He is the number one ranked MMA fighter in the world. He is not afraid of anyone and he is doing the best for his career, ”said the Mexican standout.
Rodriguez (pictured) would like to see Volkanovski become a two-division champion on Sunday, but is interested in a fight with him no matter what happens in the matchup with Makhachev.
“The moment he had the opportunity to face me or Korean Zombie, he chose to face Korean Zombie, and I don’t see anything wrong with that.
“But I want to be able to face him one day and it will be interesting to see the result.”
Volkanovski has stated that he believes that Rodríguez was “more tools” than Emmett and that the Mexican should have a clear advantage if the pair decide to stand and trade on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Makhachev is pretty sure he’s going to crash Volkanovski’s party in Australia and walk away as the new pound-for-pound king.
Meanwhile, Makhachev (pictured) is pretty sure he’s going to crash Volkanovski’s party in Australia and walk away as the new pound-for-pound king.
Not only that, but the Dagestan star wants a clean and emphatic finish to underscore his status as the sport’s newest superstar.
‘This is my main goal to be number 1 pound for pound and beat this guy, so it’s been months of hard training. My dream is to knock him out,” he told Sportsmail.