Alexander Volkanovsky has made it to Hollywood.
Not exactly, but the affable UFC featherweight champion had a chance to show off his comedic talents in a well-received bout. Sports betting advertising in his home country of Australia.
The ad’s premise pokes fun at the “over 35 curse,” which refers to a remarkable and true statistic. That means male UFC fighters over the age of 35 and under 170 pounds are 1-21 in championship contests and 0-14 in matches against younger opponents. 155 or less.
In a running time of 2 minutes and 15 seconds, the 35-year-old Volkanovski wears brown and beige clothes that the remnants of the Greatest Generation would wear, and plays the role of a man who almost falls victim to telephone credit card fraud. You’re too old,” he scoffed, nodding.He took off during the filming of a VHS tape to study young challengers and vowed to fight anyone at any time unless it was “tomato season” or after 11 p.m.
His comic timing is as spot on as his technique inside the cage, but Volkanovski won’t rule out doing more acting in the future, but vows to focus on fighting for now.
“I’m really enjoying it,” Volkanovski told the Post via video call Tuesday. “Everyone is really surprised because I always have a different staff working with me.” [filming ads]And they’re always surprised like I don’t expect an athlete to go in there and do these things in one take and even add my own flavor. ”
If he can make a career out of cheating, it’s only after he has no battles to win or curses to break.
For Volkanovski, the chance to buck the 35+ pound trend comes Saturday at UFC 298 (10 p.m. ET, ESPN+ pay-per-view), when he takes on 27-year-old Ilya Topria for the sixth time in the 145-pound division. Aim for the defense of The game is expected to end before 11pm local time in Anaheim, California.
Here’s the problem: Volkanovski (26-3, 16 finishes) already lost his name in late October when he fell short for the second time in his bid to take the lightweight title from Islam Makhachev in 2023. I had become a victim.
The bout between the former rugby player and mixed martial arts giant was decided less than a month after Volkanovski blew out his candles on his 35th birthday and less than two weeks after it was announced. did.
It’s not hard to discount this result given what Volkanovski is planning to do against undefeated Topuria (14-0, 12 finishes) at the Honda Center. Considering he had little time to prepare against a higher-class opponent who had already beaten him nine months earlier — the first time by competitive decision, the second time by knockout with a first-round head kick. thing.
To unravel the mystery of the so-called curse of 0 wins and 14 losses in the sub-lightweight division, there is only one case in which the defending champion was over 35 years old: Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Brandon Moreno IV last January. It must be noted that. Figueiredo was just a month away from turning 25 when he lost the final match of an epic 25-month four-part series.
“I don’t get distracted by this championship life,” Volkanovski said of why he has a physique that defies age-related trends. “I’m still just a dad. [to my three girls] And it’s the same guy who’s always in the gym, trying to get better. …I don’t care about any statistics until I start to see a decline in certain things. I don’t understand it one bit because that’s how I see things. ”
His challenger, Topuria, a German-born Georgian who immigrated to Spain as a teenager, is as hyped as any challenger Volkanovski has faced in his more than 1,500 consecutive days as featherweight champion. They will go into the match with hype and momentum. He is one of only eight fighters to become featherweight champion. He held the UFC gold medal for this long in one reign.
Exuding confidence and comparing his chances of becoming a star similar to Conor McGregor with the likes of UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier, oddsmakers are betting on Topuria to be a favorite, including a second and third matchup. , giving Volkanovski the best odds of defeating Volkanovski at 145 pounds to date against Max Holloway, who the Australian won the championship in December 2019. from.
At various points during his four-year run at the top of the division, Volkanovski called on his fellow 145ers to make a stronger case to challenge him, only to have Topuria challenge him for the title. He admitted that he is “the perfect man right now” to face.
However, the champion is not particularly impressed with the path Topria has taken to get here. Since Topuria entered the UFC in 2020, his only notable wins have come over former Josh Emmett and Bryce Mitchell, neither of whom came close to challenging Volkanovski.
“Has he ever fought the right guy, top athlete or top contender to get into the No. 1 capacitor fight like so many others? No, he hasn’t. Maybe,” Volkanovski said. He defeated Hall of Famer Jose Aldo and two-time title challenger Chad Mendes in 12 months during his own ascent, then beat Holloway in three subsequent wins.
“But I beat all the other top guys. Obviously he’s the next guy, but I was just lucky timing-wise because it was a much easier road to title contention.”
