Ilia Topuria is gearing up to face featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski for the 135-pound title at UFC 298 next month. Considered the best UFC featherweight of all time, Volkanovski looked almost unbeatable before his UFC 294 loss to Islam Makhachev.

However, the Australian will be, by far, the most formidable challenge the undefeated ‘Matador’ has faced in his career. And with ‘Volk’ having vowed to come for the zero in the loss column of ‘Topuria’s record, the #5 ranked featherweight has responded with vitriol.

Ilia Topuria fires back at Alexander Volkanovski

The undefeated Topuria looks to be a superstar in the making with his exciting fighting style, mic skills, and marketability along with supreme confidence. The 27-year-old has already started to call himself the featherweight champion in an effort to manifest it. Unsurprisingly, he was incensed at Volkanovski’s recent comments disparaging him and took to Twitter (X), expressing supreme confidence in a victory over Volkanovski. He promised he wouldn’t “give an inch” and took potshots at the champion.

“If you come for that zero, be prepared to leave empty-handed. I don’t plan on giving an inch . Your time has gone. Just do yourself a favor and show up for the fight, because I’ll be the one walking away with a couple of zeros . By the way, cooking suits you better,” Topuria tweeted.

While Topuria’s confidence is, no doubt, genuine, it is important to remember that ‘Volk’ is still undefeated in the featherweight division and still among the top 3 pound-for-pound fighters in the promotion. But, the Australian is at least looking like he could be beaten after UFC 294, and this just might be the best chance anyone has.

On the other hand, Volkanovski is eager to bounce back from his humiliating first-round head-kick knockout against Makhachev and make a statement with a dominant performance. Like Topuria, the featherweight king is also supremely confident of victory and looking to humble the undefeated contender.

Volkanovski vows to teach Topuria a lesson at UFC 298

Alexander Volkanvski, in a recent training video posted on his YouTube channel, spoke about his upcoming fight with Topuria. The former rugby player was looking forward to facing ‘Matador’ next month and is determined to show the “young kid” what it was like to fight someone historically great as Volkanovski undoubtedly is. The featherweight champion promised fans that he was “coming for that zero”.

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“I see his confidence. He’s a cocky, confident young dude. Let’s see if he can really bring it ’cause I know I’m gonna, and I can’t wait to show him levels. I’ve seen a lot in my game, I still feel like I’m in my prime, and I get to show this young kid that there’s levels, and I am the king of this division and he ain’t taking nothing from me,” ‘Alexander The Great’ said. What are your predictions for UFC 298?

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