Alexander Volkanovski predicts when Islam Makhachev and his corner will start losing their heads during title clash

Islam Makhachev's newly acquired lightweight championship will be on the line at UFC 284's main event against Alexander Volkanovski on the challenger's home turf in Australia.

A dominant win against Charles Oliveira won Makhachev the title, but Volkanovski does not think it will be as comfortable for the Dagestani champion against him. The featherweight champion spoke to Fox Sports Australia in an interview about making the lightweight titleholder uncomfortable:

"It's different when I'm in front of you. Once I have that movement, once I start putting hands on you. Once you grab a hold and you're like, 'F**k, this is a strong little b*****d,' once I get straight back up, pop you in the face. That's when they're gonna start getting uncomfortable. I need to capitalize when I'm on the feet. If he takes me down, I get back up. I need to put hands on him... I need to win the rounds or put him to sleep. And I'm gonna be putting hands on him and trying to find that chin and find it hard."

Volkanovski also spoke highly of Islam Makhachev's mental conditioning but pointed out the exact moment when that won't hold up against him in the fight:

"I think he's going to be mentally strong as well, I reckon Khabib [Nurmagomedov] and the boys, they put themselves through work. But I feel like them being so uncomfortable on the feet and getting desperate for takedowns and then not being as successful as they originally planned, I feel like that's where he's going to start losing his head. Him and his corner."

Watch Alexander Volkanovski's full interview below:

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Islam Makhachev intends to show Alexander Volkanovski that he does not belong to the lightweight division

Islam Makhachev intends to assert himself in his very first title defense and make the division his own. His first challenger will not be spared in the process.

The Dagestani star spoke to Fox Sports Australia in an interview and stated that he wants to give Alexander Volkanovski a tough time on the ground:

"It's not gonna be submission. I'm gonna give him like hard time, give him ground-and-pound. And when he feel, 'It's not my division, I don't want to take more damage,' he's gonna give up."

Islam Makhachev also spoke about the absence of Khabib Nurmagomedov from his corner but mentioned having discussed the fight with the Hall of Famer and putting a plan in place.

Watch Islam Makhachev's full interview below: