Islam Makhachev hilariously fires back at Alexander Volkanovski’s dig about his knee and Makhachev’s face.Back in December 2022, ‘The Great’ put forth an Instagram video wherein he suggested that Makhachev’s face resembles his (Volkanovski’s) knee.
Makhachev is the current UFC lightweight champion and the UFC’s No.2-ranked pound-for-pound fighter. On the other hand, Volkanovski is the reigning UFC featherweight champion and the No.1-ranked UFC pound-for-pound fighter.
Russia’s Islam Makhachev is scheduled to fight Australia’s Alexander Volkanovski in a lightweight matchup, with Makhachev’s lightweight title and Volkanovski’s pound-for-pound throne at stake. Their super-fight will headline UFC 284, which will take place at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, on February 12, 2023.
Watch Volkanovski compare his knee to Makhachev’s face in the video below:
Ahead of his highly-anticipated fight against Alexander Volkanovski, Islam Makhachev spoke to Niko Pajarillo of Fox Sports Australia and was asked about ‘Volk’ comparing his knee to Makhachev’s face.
Makhachev responded by jibing at Volkanovski’s height. The UFC lightweight kingpin smilingly stated:
“How he want to put my face in his knee? Because he is short, and he needs some chair for this.”
Watch Makhachev discuss the topic at 3:16 in the video below:
Alexander Volkanovski’s head coach addresses his purported height disadvantage against Islam Makhachev
The long-running verbal back-and-forth between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski reached a crescendo at UFC 280 in October 2022 after Makhachev defeated Charles Oliveira to capture the UFC lightweight title. A fired-up Makhachev proceeded to call out Volkanovski, with the latter responding in kind and accepting his challenge.
Before they came face-to-face inside the octagon, Makhachev notably mocked ‘Volk’ for his height. In the ensuing months, the 155-pound champion has consistently joked about his 145-pound counterpart’s height.
The consensus is that Islam Makhachev‘s elite grappling prowess and height advantage makes him the favorite to defeat Volkanovski. Regardless, Volkanovski’s head coach Joe Lopez recently explained why his star student’s supposed height disadvantage could prove to be his biggest strength.
Speaking to Submission Radio, Joe Lopez indicated that Alexander Volkanovski’s short stature and limbs give him a low center of gravity and make it tough for opponents to attack him. Shutting down the narrative that Volkanovski’s height puts him at a disadvantage against Makhachev, Lopez said:
“His size [will be his biggest strength], you know. He’s small, and he’s got very short legs, so it’s very hard to hold him down. He’s got a lower center of gravity. These things that people think are going against [Volkanovski] are actually advantages for him… Those short limbs make it very, very hard to hold him and do things to him.”
Watch Lopez’s assessment below: