Dana White has said he would give Alexander Volkanovski almost anything at this stage of his career. He has also made clear where the wait is coming from.
The UFC CEO says the superfight with Justin Gaethje depends on a decision only Gaethje can make. White was speaking on the Jim Rome show and brought up the issue with the fight:
“I would pretty much do anything for Alexander Volkanovski at this point in his career. Great guy, great champion, great athlete. The big question is ‘What does Justin Gaethje wanna do?.’”
He added:
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“Justin coming off this unbelievable win at the White House. He is an incredible athlete too, what does he want to do next?”
Check out Dana White speaking about Justin Gaethje and Alexander Volkanovski below:
That win came at UFC Freedom 250 at the White House in June, when Gaethje stopped Ilia Topuria at the end of the fourth round to take the undisputed lightweight title and hand the previously unbeaten Topuria his first loss.
‘The Highlight‘ said that night he had promised his mother he would not decide his future in the cage.
Alexander Volkanovski pushes for the fight against Justin Gaethje
Alexander Volkanovski made his case for the fight against Justin Gaethje before and after UFC 333. The Australian stopped the previously undefeated Movsar Evloev with ground strikes at 4:54 of the second round at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. It was his ninth win in a UFC featherweight title fight, moving him past José Aldo, and it took his record to 29-4.
Volkanovski’s proposal is a champion against champion bout, then two retirements.
“That’s something I would retire for,” Volkanovski said at the post-fight press conference. “If they wanted to give me that opportunity, I would retire. Win or lose, retire.”
Under his plan, the divisions would not be blocked because both men would leave the sport afterwards.
Gaethje has not publicly addressed the proposal. He has been recovering from damage to both hands and said in August he would not fight again before 2027 while weighing retirement with his family.
The lightweight queue makes the delay costly. Arman Tsarukyan, the No. 1 contender at 155 pounds, knocked out Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 331 in September and says the UFC told him he would get an answer by the end of November.
Volkanovski has other options. He said he would vacate the featherweight belt to fight Tsarukyan for a vacant lightweight title, and he has floated a rematch with Topuria, who knocked him out at UFC 298.
Edited by Saiyed Adeem Karim
