Alexander Volkanovski Says He’s ‘Locked In’ As Backup Fighter for UFC 280 Headliner

If something goes wrong for either Charles
Oliveira
or Islam
Makhachev
prior to
UFC 280
, Alexander
Volkanovski
will be waiting in the wings.

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The reigning featherweight champion announced on his YouTube
channel Monday that he will serve as the backup fighter for the
lightweight championship bout at the top of the UFC 280 card on
Oct. 22 in Abu Dhabi.

“We’re locked in as the backup fighter,” Volkanovski said. “I’ve
been calling for it, I said I wanted it. Just had to make sure the
hand was all good. We are good. We’ve got the clearance to fight.
The UFC’s on board, everyone’s on board. So I’ll be at UFC 280 to
make weight.

“Let’s see what happens, if someone doesn’t make it, I’m there to
save the day. If not, I guess I’m locked in as the next guy to
fight for the lightweight title and that’s that.”

Volkanovski underwent surgery for a broken thumb shortly after his
victory over Max
Holloway
in their trilogy bout at UFC 276 this past July. The
City Kickboxing standout was initially expected to be sidelined
approximately 12 weeks following the procedure, but it appears his
timeline has moved up. Volkanovski expressed a desire to move up a
division in hopes of becoming a two-division champion if he
defeated Holloway for a third time, and UFC president Dana White
said he was
willing to entertain that request
if the Aussie was
victorious.

The 34-year-old Volkanovski is in the midst of a 22-fight winning
streak four successful title defenses and 12 consecutive triumphs
in UFC competition. He’s bested the likes of Holloway, Chan Sung
Jung
, Brian
Ortega
, Jose Aldo and
Chad
Mendes
at 145 pounds.

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