Alexander Volkanovski on Conor McGregor: ‘I take that lightweight title, he knows there’s an opportunity there’
Alexander Volkonvski thought his Twitter exchange with Conor McGregor was weird, but isn’t surprised that he took a shot at him.
After featherweight champion Volkanovski (25-1 MMA, 12-0 UFC) and newly crowned lightweight champ Islam Makhachev faced off in the octagon at UFC 280 to set up a potential superfight, McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) tweeted that a fight between them would barely sell.
That prompted Volkanovski to respond, and their brief back-and-forth abruptly ended with former UFC dual-champ McGregor showing respect and giving him advice on how to beat Makhachev.
“He knows he ain’t fighting for that featherweight title,” Volkanovski told Submission Radio. “I go and take that lightweight title, he knows there’s an opportunity there.”
A fight with McGregor comes with its obvious perks. But if Volkanovski is able to become lightweight champion, fighting McGregor would also be about adding onto his legacy.
“I’ve touched on the fact that he was the featherweight champion and he’s the only featherweight champion I haven’t beaten,” Volkanovski said. “So obviously that fight means something to me as well as well as the money that’s involved and all that type of stuff. You know the whole circus around him, which would be entertaining and fun – I’d enjoy it. So all that type of stuff will be great, but there’s still a deeper sort of meaning to that fight than just that. I think he knows that, as well.”
