ABU DHABI – Initially fired up by the news of Alexander Volkanovski’s positioning as UFC 280 backup fighter, Beneil Dariush has made peace with the situation.
Throughout much of his training camp, Dariush (21-4-1 MMA, 15-4-1 UFC) was under the impression that he would step into Saturday’s main event if Charles Oliveira or Islam Makhachev was unable to partake. That’s why he was confused less than two weeks before the event when Volkanovski (25-1 MMA, 12-0 UFC) announced himself as the official backup.
Three days out, however, Dariush has changed his tune.
“I’ve just been processing it,” Dariush told MMA Junkie and other reporters Wednesday at a pre-fight news conference. “It took a while. I was pretty annoyed about the whole thing, so I took a step back. I put myself in everybody’s shoes. Calling and yelling at my manager for a while, that didn’t make me feel better. Here’s what I thought about: Volk is pound-for-pound the king right now, right? I’m correct on that, yes? And he offered to be a backup.
“If I was in the UFC’s shoes, it’d be a no-brainer for me, as well. It’s not hard to understand why they did what they did. Does it suck for me? For sure it sucks for me, but I understand why everybody did what they did. With that being said, I just take my focus back to doing what I need to do, and that’s Gamrot.”
Not to get it twisted, Dariush still is uncomfortable with being the odd man out. He just keeps remembering the UFC is doing what’s best for business and making the most notable fights possible.
“It still sucks,” Dariush said. “Being a backup and losing that position sucks. Losing the title shot sucks. It all is as crappy as it gets, but I understand why they’re doing what they’re doing. I understand my focus is not the same focus as the UFC. It’s not the same as Dana’s. I understand Dana. His focus is basically profits, and that’s what he’s supposed to do for his business. I have a different focus. My focus is I’ve been given a God-given talent, and I’m not wasting it. I’m not squandering it. I want to fight the best people in the world, and I want to do it as often as I can. If I can’t get the champion, I want another dog after this fight. I want to fight the best guys and it’s that simple.”
Outside of the backup position snub, Dariush welcomed Volkanovski to the lightweight division with open arms. As he thought about a future matchup against the current UFC featherweight champion, Dariush grinned in excitement.
“He’s incredible,” Dariush said. “For him to come to lightweight, I think it’s awesome. An opportunity to fight him would be great. We could do it right after this. I’d love that. (Respectfully,) of course.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 280.
