Alexander Volkov has fired back at Josh Hokit after the heavyweight contender mocked his fighting style and questioned why the Russian remained on the UFC roster. Volkov dismissed Hokit’s criticism while defending his own credentials and questioning the legitimacy of the heavyweight title picture.
The feud began after the UFC booked Hokit to challenge Ciryl Gane for the heavyweight championship at UFC 334, overlooking Volkov despite his strong run of performances. Hokit subsequently called Volkov boring and suggested the promotion should have released him.
During a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Volkov described Hokit’s response as childish and argued that the young contender lacked the experience to make such claims:
“This belt doesn’t define me. I’m still champion by myself. I understand who I am, where I am, what I can do, which guys I can beat… If the champion throws out stare-downs and thinks like an elementary school kid, and he becomes a champion, this means the belt has the same worth as a regional title in Europe. You should have a guy who proves his record, who can beat everyone, who is a real martial artist, not just somebody who does big things or breaks a rule every fight or tries to injure your opponent.”
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He added:
“He thinks like an elementary school kid. That’s it. This is an answer I could have had when I was studying in school with my schoolmates. This is not an argument… He has maybe a grand total of five fights in the organization, and they give him a title shot. Again, this just defines what the belt means… I still can beat everyone in the heavyweight roster right now. I can do it easily, with a smile, confidently. Better for him to face me in the Octagon, and we will see who is better.”
Check our Alexander Volkov‘s comments below:
Alexander Volkov explains why Dana White failed to recognize him at UFC 333
Alexander Volkov believes Dana White genuinely failed to recognize him during an awkward exchange at the UFC 333 pre-fight press conference.
The Russian heavyweight revealed he decided to approach the microphone after discovering he and Rizvan Kuniev were excluded from the media lineup despite competing on the main card. Volkov joined the media queue and asked questions to UFC officials and fighters.
Volkov suspects his nationality and the number of fighters on the roster contributed to White’s confusion:
“Of course, he didn’t recognize me. First of all, I am a Russian fighter. I’m not even sure he can remember my name. And I bet every time he hears my name, he thinks they’re talking about Alexander Volkanovski. But it’s fine. There are like about over 500 or more fighters on the roster, so he doesn’t have to recognize every fighter.”
Edited by Abhishek Nambiar
