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Alexander Volkanovski seems to have finished his saga with Max Holloway after defeating him for the second time at UFC Fight Island in the co-main event of UFC 251.
While it's not known when he's going to fight again, the next step seems to be to find a logical contender. While Calvin Kattar certainly plunged himself into contendership following a great win over Dan Ige, he's not a frontrunner for a title shot yet.
Two fights will determine the next challenger or two for the Featherweight Championship - Zabit Magomedsharipov vs. Yair Rodriguez, and 'The Korean Zombie' Chan Sung Jung vs. Brian Ortega.
Alexander Volkanovski was asked about what's next for the Featherweight division with him as the king. He told Big Sports Breakfast on Sky Radio (H/T BJPENN.com):
“Well, there’s a few. We got like probably four guys that are like all in the same boat, they’re all probably one win away from being the No. 1 contender. They’re all like just there but they just need to have that fight and everybody is going to be screaming their name. Now that I got the win, let the division play out, then hopefully by the end of the year they got that No. 1 contender,” Volkanovski said.
Alexander Volkanovski named Zabit Magomedsharipov and The 'Korean Zombie' Chan Sung Jung as the two frontrunners:
“But right now there’s a couple of frontrunners, maybe Zombie and Zabit, I’d say they’re probably the frontrunners. If they get a win they’ll be clear ahead of the No. 1 contenders and I look forward to taking them on.”
Who will be Alexander Volkanovski's next title challenger?
It wouldn't be surprising to see UFC go directly with 'The Korean Zombie' Chan Sung Jung if the Brian Ortega fight doesn't materialize by the end of the year. The only reason the fight hasn't happened yet is due to South Korea's lockdown restrictions.
As for Magomedsharipov and Yair Rodriguez, they're expected to face off at some point in September. Magomedsharipov doesn't have much five-round experience inside the Octagon.
Either way, Alexander Volkanovski expressed his desire to face the top contenders and he's going to have an exciting new challenge next fight regardless. He was given a lot of flack after UFC 251 as most people, including Dana White, felt that Max Holloway had won the fight. It led to the opposite result of what he wanted - to prove himself as the "true" Champion of the Featherweight division.
