Following UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi, the champion of the UFC’s lightweight division has a name, and it’s Islam Makhachev.
After submitting Charles Oliveira in the main event of the pay-per-view event, Makhachev wasted little time making his intentions known, clearly indicating a champ vs. champ fight against Alexander Volkanovski is what he wants next.
The featherweight champ Volkanovski prepared all week to be the backup for the UFC 280 main event if something went wrong, including recording his weight at the official weigh-ins.
When Makhachev called for Volkanovski to enter the octagon during his post fight interview, he obliged, and the two came face-to-face, giving an early look at what appears to be the next fight for both men.
But how would this superfight go down? How would Volkanovski deal with the size difference? Could Makhachev handle the speed and sharp striking of the lighter division’s champ?
Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, Mike Bohn, and Nolan King weighed in on that topic with host “Gorgeous” George. You can watch their discussion in the video above. You can also check out this week’s complete episode below.
“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel.