The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Australia with UFC 312 live on PPV from Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney on February 8 (ET). While no bouts have been confirmed for the fight card to date, former featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski is among fighters expected to battle it out on the night.
“Anything with gold with it, I’ll be happy,” Alexander Volkanovski told media on Thursday. “That’ll just lock me in for whoever it is that wins that anyway.” So, even if it is interim [title], that’s still a big one. I’d say, it’d be an exciting one with [Diego] Lopes. I’d say, if that was going to happen. If not, it’s Max [Holloway] or Ilia [Topuria].”
Volkanovski (26-4) lost his 145 lbs belt in February by knockout in the second round against Ilia Topuria. Last October, the Wollongong, NSW native was KO’d by lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in their second fight that he took on a short notice.
The 36-year-old’s most recent win goes to July 2023, when he stopped Yair Rodriguez in the third round and made the fifth successful championship defense. Earlier in his career, Volkanovski secured three victories by decision against former champion Max Holloway.
Hawaii’s Holloway (26-7) looks to regain the title on October 26, when he challenges German-born Georgian-Spanish Topuria (15-0) at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi. Meanwhile, Brazilian-born Mexico-based No. 3-ranked contender Diego Lopes (26-6) defeated LA’s Brian Ortega by unanimous decision in September and secured the fifth win in a row.
UFC 312 follows UFC 305: Du Plessis vs Adesanya held in Perth, WA in August. The event’s local date in Australia is Sunday, February 9.