Russian fans of mixed martial arts enthusiastically supported our heavyweights Alexander Volkov and Sergei Pavlovich at UFC tournaments. But this summer, fans will have to make a difficult choice, as Dana White decided to pit two comrades against each other in the Octagon.

Really, the organization couldn’t find other opponents for two top fighters from Russia?

“We both don’t want this”

On June 22 in Saudi Arabia at the UFC tournament, two of the strongest Russian heavyweights today – Alexander Volkov and Sergei Pavlovich – will compete. Just yesterday, fans were waiting for Drago’s fight with Brazilian Gilton Almeida, and Pavlovich was predicted to be Cyril Gan’s opponent. But Dana White suddenly decided to replay everything.

It is worth noting that Volkov and Pavlovich are not only representatives of the same country, but also friends who trained together and helped each other prepare for fights. Both were cool about the meeting in the octagon at the official tournament and allowed such a battle only if the championship belt was at stake.

— I am skeptical about this. I think this fight will not take place. We probably both don’t want this because we trained a lot together. And for this fight to happen, it must be a title fight or probably a contender’s one,” Volkov said in an interview with Sport24 in January last year.

Alexander Volkov and Sergey Pavlovich after sparring / Photo: © Vadim Tikhomirov / Match TV

“I always said that I would never want to fight with guys from Russia. There is a global organization here, there are many guys from different countries,” Pavlovich told MMA Bulletin in June 2023.

At other times, Sergei wondered: what is the general purpose of such a fight if it is not a title fight? Drago reminded that he had a good relationship with Pavlovich and it would not be very comfortable to fight with him. The UFC felt that the comfort of the fighters was not the most important thing, and decided to prepare a battle that both did not want.

“This is a great fight”

Determining by eye who is stronger in this pair is not so easy. Pavlovich is ranked higher – he has only two defeats, while his opponent has 10. In addition, Sergei recently fought for the interim champion belt. But Drago has much more experience both in MMA in general and specifically in the UFC. Volkov had 47 official fights, while his counterparts had 20. It’s difficult for even experts to decide on a favorite.

— For the Russian MMA market, this is a great fight: convenient time zone, convenient day, guys with strong names. I’m not ready to name a favorite; both of them should have the same level of motivation. Pavlovich fought for the title in his last fight, and he needs to overcome the defeat, while Volkov is in sixth position in the ranking and has long wanted a fight for the title. I think that a good, solid fight awaits us,” Nikolai Klimenko, head of the RCC league, told Match TV.

“On the one hand, it’s frustrating that our guys are fighting among themselves. The guys are different in technical and other parameters. I am sure that the guys will show a cool, worthy fight. This will be the decoration of the tournament. I won’t give preference to anyone, I respect them,” Match TV quotes former UFC fighter Alexei Oleynik.

— Volkov will definitely win. It’s disgusting that Russian guys are pitted against each other. Although I, of course, understand, this fight still had to happen someday. In general, it’s logical. I hope that in Arab countries they will earn a little more, at least that’s good,” former UFC fighter Oleg Taktarov told Match TV.

Alexander Volkov and Tai Tuivasa / Photo: © Chris Unger / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.ru

– Pavlovich – 15 knockouts in the first round, since 2017 he has not reached a judge’s decision, he fought for the UFC champion title. I think the first five minutes will be the most dangerous for Volkov. Alexander is more technical, he also finished a lot of people, but his blows are not so hard, and he wears out. If Pavlovich doesn’t get in in the first round, then he won’t have much of a chance to win,” Match TV quotes Russian MMA fighter Ivan Shtyrkov as saying.

“These are two top heavyweights in the world, sooner or later their paths would have crossed. They are at the top, they are both competing for the belt one way or another. So this fight would happen. I think the favorite is Pavlovich, due to his pressure, pressure and knockout power,” said Russian fighter Alexey Makhno in an interview with Fight.ru.

Sergey Pavlovich / Photo: © Fight Nights

If we ignore nationality, then this is potentially a really cool fight. But, given the good relationship between the rivals, we can assume that there will be no harshness in the cage. In mixed martial arts, there have already been enough fights of dubious entertainment, in which comrades or simply fighters who know each other very well met. How would White not then have to run into the octagon with the words: “Are you taking us for boys?”

All UFC tournaments are broadcast live on the Match TV and Match! Fighter”.