As Islam Makhachev prepares to defend his lightweight title against Alexander Volkanovski in less than two months’ time, Jamahal Hill has given his final decision on who he believes will walk away with his hands raised.
‘Sweet Dreams’ is on a mission for gold of his own, and after being initially booked to face Anthony Smith, the knockout artist has been handed the chance to fight for the light heavyweight title next year. On January 21, the 31-year-old will stand across the octagon from Glover Teixeira in Brazil for the coveted 205lb strap.
During a recent interview, Jamahal Hill gave an analysis of what fans can expect in the Makhachev vs. Volkanovski bout, and despite insisting that Dagestani fighters are “different,” he believes the featherweight champion will walk away victorious.
“I’m gonna be honest with you, I don’t like betting against Islam. Those dudes are different, when they get on top of you it’s clearly f***ing different. I like Volk, I said it back in international fight week when he beat Max Holloway, that was it for me. To me, he’s the pound-for-pound best… He’s fast, I don’t think Islam’s ever fought anybody that fast… I think Volk can get up, stay moving, stay light on his feet, striking and walking him into some traps and clock him. Start to ring his bell a few times, especially early, I could see Volk [winning]… I’m probably leaning towards Volk.”
Hill did praise Islam Makhachev and admitted that he could easily retain his lightweight title by implementing his heavy-pressure grappling style on the much smaller Alexander Volkanovski.
Check out the light heavyweight title challenger’s UFC 284 prediction in the video below.
Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski and other fights at UFC 284
Less than two months away in Perth, Australia, Islam Makhachev will be making his first defense of the 155lb title when he welcomes Alexander Volkanovski into the cage in enemy territory.
Although originally planned to compete on the card, reports suggest that Robert Whittaker will no longer fight on February 11. The Aussie was one half of the title eliminator clash against Paulo Costa, but the Brazilian hasn’t come to terms with the UFC and was subsequently removed from the card.
A major matchup scheduled to take place at UFC 284 will see an interim featherweight be put on the line when Yair Rodriguez and Josh Emmett slug it out in the co-headliner.