As fight fans gear up for the highly anticipated UFC Lightweight Championship between Alexander Volkanovski and Islam Makhachev, Bas Rutten has made a bold prediction. The former UFC heavyweight champion believes that Volkanovski will come out on top.
The Volkanovski vs. Makhachev matchup is the main event of the upcoming UFC 284 PPV in Perth, Australia. The event will take place on Saturday, Feb. 11, and air exclusively on ESPN+ in the United States. Order the UFC 284 PPV now.
Volkanovski’s impressive UFC career has caught the attention of Bas Rutten, who appeared on a recent episode of Submission Radio. Rutten had nothing but praise for the featherweight champion, “The guy has endless energy, he just keeps pushing and pushing.
Rutten appeared on a recent episode of Submission Radio and expressed confidence in the abilities of the featherweight champ. “I’ll put my money on him,” Rutten said. “Yeah, I put my money on him.”
“I’ve been so impressed with the guy, and also the way he reacted outside, and he’s just a really good guy with that endless energy. He can keep pushing, pushing, pushing. If he just fights every takedown, if he fights constantly fighting, you know, get him tired, see if he can get him tired. And I know Makhachev’s got great stamina as well, but I think Volkanovski’s got really good stamina and he should really use the gas tank.”
Order UFC 284: Makhachev vs Volkanovski
Rutten reflected on Volkvanoski’s title defense against Brian Ortega and was full of praise. He said, “Volkanovski showed that he’s a true fighter when he faced Ortega. He was in some tough submissions but fought his way out of them. He’s a true Terminator with endless energy and he’s going to come for Makhachev in this fight.”
Volkanovski is the current UFC featherweight champion and is ranked as the top pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC. Makhachev jumped up to the #2 spot in the pound-for-pound rankings after recently becoming the lightweight champion, meaning that the two current best fighters on the UFC roster — regardless of weight class — will meet in the octagon.
While he acknowledges that this will be a tough fight for both fighters, Rutten is confident in Volkanovski’s ability to come out on top. “This is a tough fight, man,” Rutten said. “And, I know he’s been steamrolling through everybody, Makhachev has. But Volkanovski, he impresses me every single time when I see him fight. And if there is a guy who can do it, I believe that he can do it. He can stop him even. That’s a big one. But you know, if a punch connects, both have been knocked out by the way. Only once, but both of them. So, they are susceptible.”
“Volkanovski is just so good. When I saw him fight Ortega, I was blown away. He’s a true animal in the Octagon.”
Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski is the main event of UFC 284 which will take place on Saturday, Feb. 11. The only way to watch UFC 284 in the United States is by ordering the official PPV on the ESPN+ website. Order the PPV now.