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Alexander Volkanovski is confident of Michael Chandler being the next UFC lightweight champion. The Australian fighter said Chandler's explosiveness and wrestling background will help him prevail against Charles Oliveira.
'Do Bronx' is set to face Chandler in the main event of UFC 262. The stacked PPV card will take place on May 15, 2021, at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The event will also feature the returning Nate Diaz going up against Leon Edwards in the co-headliner.
In his recent interview with Helen Yee Sports, Alexander Volkanovski gave his prediction for the upcoming lightweight title bout between Chandler and Oliveira. According to him, 'Iron' will overpower Do Bronx in the UFC 262 main event:
"I think I'm gonna give it to Chandler. I think they're both great fighters. Charles is a great fighter but I think just the explosiveness and obviously that wrestling background and all that, I don't think the jiu-jitsu will be an issue (for Chandler). I think Chandler will get it done," said Volkanovski.
Chandler signed with the UFC in September last year. He served as a backup fighter for the UFC 254 title clash between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje, but didn't get the opportunity to lay claim to the belt.
The 34-year-old finally made his promotional debut at UFC 257 in stunning fashion as he finished Dan Hooker via TKO in the second round of the fight.
Alexander Volkanovski fancies moving up to lightweight
In the same interview, Alexander Volkanovski also reflected on the chances of moving up a weight class to lightweight. The UFC featherweight champion said he has competed in the 155-pound weight class numerous times, but his focus is on defending his belt in the featherweight division.
"Lightweight division is something I've fought in many times anyway. I've fought in middleweight, welterweight plenty of times. It's something that I'm used to, something that I've done plenty of times before. Will it happen? I think so. But I've got a couple of fights that I want to get out of the way in the featherweight division. The featherweight division is definitely where I'll be this year. We'll see what happens next year," said Volkanovski.
Alexander Volkanovski made his professional MMA debut as a welterweight fighter. During his stint as an amateur, the Australian also competed in the middleweight division. He was expected to defend his belt for the second time against Brian Ortega at UFC 260, but the bout has now been postponed.
