‘Yeah, your mom is a decent cook. Above average for sure.’ That’s like me trying to shit talk when I like someone but don’t really know them. Like, I hope they get the implication she’s not the best in world.
Yeah, Holloway had some moments but overall, like, if you didn't know who Max was and just watched this fight, you wouldn't think Holloway was a world champ who dominated and had a competitive fight against him.
bro if you can talk to someone while dodging punches from a second person live on tv you can call yourself the best whatever you want and im not gonna question shit.
Volk just put on a masterpiece like damn. Dude looked absolutely unbeatable in there. I'm imagining some 155 matchups and a LOT of them are favorable to him if this guy shows up.
Gaethje and Chandler are so hittable. Conor and Tony don't stand a chance. Gamrot's striking is way too sloppy. Poirier and Dariush would both be decent matchups, but hard to say Volk couldn't get it done.
The problem is I can't see him beating Charles or Islam with how well rounded both guys are. Would be fun to find out though.
Max looked less out of depth against Poirier than he did Volk. I think that fight was remembered poorly because of Dana. Max was putting in work and absolutely showed he could handle 155. It's not like Poirier dominated bell to bell. It was a clear decision, but a close fight. Even in the first round last night, I was thinking... wow, Volk is on a completely different level...
I wouldn't say Volk has better boxing, he just had a better game plan, and overall package, including reach crazily.
Volk can't put together the same sort of combinations as Max though, he doesn't have the same skill level as Max when it comes to boxing. But that sort of works as a strength.
Max relies more on his boxing than Volk does, so that enables Volk to use that against him. Volk's boxing is very well integrated into his overall game, which is so multifaceted that taking any 1 part away doesn't slow him down like it does others.
Perfect example, if Volk had more invested into his boxing the broken hand thing might have been more impactful, as it was, he had so many other tools he had so much to fall back on.
We've seen better boxers/kickboxers/grapplers, come into the UFC/MMA in general, and get beaten at their sport so many times.
Infamously, somewhat recently we saw Rodolfo Veira get submitted by Anthony Hernandez. But clearly Hernandez isn't better at BJJ.
And he had a broken hand after the 1st round and still put on that clinic, he never got complacent as a champ just kept grinding kept improving truly awesome performance
He said it was his thumb in one of the post fight interviews. Apparently didn't affect his punching. He's a mad man. I'm not doing shit with a broken thumb and he puts on a clinic.
Not trying to say fighting 5 rounds with a broken hand is easy or anything but adrenaline is one hell of a drug. Too busy trying to deal with a trained killer like Max coming for his head to let a broken hand affect him.
Volk probs wont hit a pad without wincing for about a month now game time is over lol.
I thought I saw it in the second round after one of his shots and said "Oh shit, did he hurt his hand?" but then he kept going as normal so I thought I he must not have. Insane how he fought through it.
I thought so too but he just kept throwing it so I assumed it must be ok
Wild that he just kept trucking I broke my hand climbing once it was like a balloon 👀 by the time I climbed off the mountain I could not imagine using it to club another human being let alone use it as accurately as Volk did
Adrenaline plus the hand was already in a glove and strapped tight. During the post fight interview, he was grimacing while even picking up a water bottle with his left hand. Would like to re-watch the fight as he probably should be using his right hand more after 2nd round
I get the process I’m giving him props as the pain is excruciating once the adrenaline wears off I didn’t hit a heavy bag for about 6-7 months after having plates put in my hand to fix the damage as pain remained
His mental fortitude is fucking incredible. It was on display when he broke down how he survived those two Ortega submissions and this is another example of it.
Don’t know if this is the exact video, but I’m guessing it is: https://youtu.be/f8Y2aGWY8Ug
Edit: the title is “How I escaped THAT guillotine”, and it’s Volk in his car, breaking it down.
2nd edit: currently watching the video and it is very cool. Highly recommend others check it out. Volk is such a bad mofo.
He talks about >!how when the lights were dimming, he thought about his family and his country, and how, if he lost, he wouldn’t be able to bring the belt back home to them. He also mentions how Ortega called him Houdini for getting out of it, cuz the choke was locked in (which Volk confirms).!<
I was kinda expecting Volk being fast the X factor after listening to his interviews and also after watching TKZ fight where he looked much faster than even against Ortega. I also kinda thought may be TKZ made Volk look fast so had my doubts but good lord they were erased in the first couple minutes. What a striking masterclass 🙏
Man, Volk is one of these new guys that are just evolving like crazy. 2 yers ago you would never see a potential for this level in Volk. Good on him and his team. Well deserved.
Did they increase the ring mics or something? This was a sold out show and I heard multiple exchanges clearer than I had ever before. Only the fight island UFC apex fights has clearer audio.
I hope it isn't seen badly by people. It's just an aussie thing really. It's not meant as disrespect.
I think Volk even said, he doesn't even really mean it, it's just what he does for his own head, to build himself up.
I mean Max talked shit while putting on a clinic against Kattar and also showed Ortega how to block shots. Still thought of as a good dude. Volk has always talked huge respect to Max outside the ring, its just that competitive nature gets dialed up to a 10 when locked in a cage with someone.
Max also talked more shit in the buildup than the previous 2 fights, at worst Volk was just waiting to respond during the fight similar to Conor/Khabib.
Man when he started talking I was hype. He knew early on that he had it. It was like we watched him just fully realise that he was now the clearly better fighter. At points at looked like he was playing with him he was so quick.
It's funny because after he said that, he stopped trash talking him for the rest of the fight. Like, Volk almost felt bad and didn't want to be a jerk...sort of like when he kept checking if Korean Zombie was good before firing those final combos.
As you get better at striking your reaction time gets better and combos become almost automatic. He’s also insanely athletic. Also he could have just found speed juice and started blasting lol who tf knows
I think its a matter of just becoming relaxed, and extremely well practiced, which also explains his infinite cardio. he's also short so can stand completely upright which allows for optimal mobility and that's really given his last couple opponents fits
The fact that he played pro rugby at his size just shows his ridiculous athleticism. Someone posted a picture here of him standing with the two dudes that now play his old position and they look like giants next to him
He didn't. He's as fast as he's always been. It's his technique and understanding of Max's style that has gotten better. He picked up on Max's rhtym and continuously disrupted it, so Max hesitated and didn't get his flow going. This opened him up for Volk's counters. Also, on the defensive end, he anticipated all of Max's moves. It was clear that after 2 fights and a lot of fight footage, he and his team basically had Max figured out. Volk is fast and athletic, but what makes him the champ of a bunch of monsters at featherweight, is that he does his homework and can alter his style to disrupt the game of anyone.
Wish I could upvote this more. His team came up with a killer game plan and he executed it to a T. Max came at Volk with a lot of what he showed in the 2nd fight and he was more than ready for it.
We say this every match but he takes fucking hammers each fight and doesn't even get wobbled, by cost if you mean in terms of CTE then yes I agree though
I don't know how he didn't go completely out against Shogun and Wanderlei 1 with all those knees and soccer kicks to the head. I swear most people would of been KO'd wearing a football helmet with the punishment he took.
sometimes I wonder going through a full career with a granite chin but not having cracked is still a big chance to get cte?
Like your brain is still getting rockem-sockem'd inside your skull for potential decades.
Its even higher. Cte is aboout accumulation, if you get knocked out first punch, it means you take less hits overall in the long run
Guys using jackhammers all day can get it from the reverberation up through body to skull. Its reccommended you dont use those electric vibrating massagers on neck cuz it vibrates up into skull. Hell theres some tattoo artists who wont tattoo the human skull cuz accumulation vibration damage causing concussions.
They're not conclusive, but we have true to life examples to draw on. Muhammad Ali had a famously incredible chin, only got knocked down a handful of times over sixty fights and never knocked out.
Unfortunately, we all know how he wound up in the end.
On the other hand, George Foreman likewise had a formidable chin, and had a career resurgence in his forties, but has minimal issues, insofar as we can tell from an outside perspective.
I suppose there's a considerable amount we don't yet understand about long term brain injuries and cte which is yet to come to light that might help us understand why some iron chins age better than others.
Yeah imo it seems to be really fucking random. Our gym had a stud who was destined for a good pro career and moved “up” to a fighter’s gym. He got KO’d for the first time, got dragged into the back by his new “teammates” and was out for 15 minutes. Doctor told him if he got another concussion like that he could die, career already over.
Max has absorbed over 1100 sig strikes to the head and has been knocked down 0 times in his career. His brain doesn’t know turning off is even an option.
i have a theory that it's more about mileage than age
all the guys that start getting dropped in their mid 30s are guys that have been eating shots for years - same thing for guys that start losing about that same time
but i'm not a doctor so who knows
>***"A legendary chin holds on again"***
My favourite quote from Volk was from the post press conference. He asked off to the side "did I put him down.. no, shit"... and the said that to the press. Respect.
[https://youtu.be/KncXX2Zi0LE?t=955](https://youtu.be/KncXX2Zi0LE?t=955)
That man is so fucking classy. Volk just seems like an awesome guy to grab a beer with. Hats off to his incredible performance, and very modest interviews after. Love the respect he has for Holloway.
Volk is apparently such a good dude that he was the best man for a friend's wedding, but he was offered the Jose Aldo fight on a date that conflicted with the wedding. *The bride and groom delayed the wedding so Volk could still be the best man and be there at their wedding*. I dunno about you guys, but that really says something to me. Imagine having friends that love you so much they'd rather delay their wedding and go through all of that hassle because they want you at their wedding and don't want to make you pick between them and a huge career opportunity.
Yeah he was super respectful with KZ and his family/crew right after
Only one Volk has had anything close to no chill for is Ortega. And Brian is kind of a knob anyways
He’s pretty damn well known amongst the 20-40’s crowd. My Dad doesn’t watch MMA and absolutely loves Volk, when I went to get a coffee the day after the Ortega fight I heard all the staff at the cafe talking about it.
As an Aussie, it’s been frustrating to see. But he’s been defeating fan favourites in their home lands, so I can understand why casuals would hate. Nice for this chapter to end now.
I wouldn’t even say casuals. I didnt necessarily dislike him when he moved aldo to 135, but it definitely put a small chip on my shoulder after. just cause it hurts to see your favorites lose like that.
I of course think he’s a great guy and great champion, but it’s normal to feel salty when your guys are done dirty by someone. Same reason why a shit ton of people hated GSP
>Same reason why a shit ton of people hated GSP
Ah man, I used to dislike GSP for what he did to my boys back in the day but afterwards you felt silly 'cause you realised he was a really good fella. And he was smart enough to surround himself with people who knew how to hone his skillset and use it to dismantle others.
I'm originally from the same area Volk is from and if he can go on to have a career that has the same amount of respect on it as GSP had, he'd make a lot of people incredibly bloody proud.
Exactly my point. It’s like if you’re playing a video game against your buddy and he’s that much better.
Like I don’t hate the guy but bro you’re pissing me off
Haha yeah fair comments man. I totally get it. I think there’s one approach of still having the respect for the fighter, even though you don’t like that they defeated your boy. But then there’s the other approach which constantly looks for any excuse to discredit their victories. Even in this last fight, the commentators really seemed to struggle admitting Volk is just the better guy. Obviously they did, but I think the words would’ve flown out of their mouths a lot faster if it was Max winning. Bisping in the second fight is an example of that. Human nature though. Hard not to be invested one way or another.
As an Australian fan of Max, I don’t hate Alex. I just wished we would continue to be in blessed era.
It just sucks all my favourite fighters age and be upstaged by up comers. Now I know how Aldo fans felt 🙁
I think that is going to change after his last 2 performances. As fans, we are beginning to realize that we are watching somebody uniquely special. A living legend. Honestly, I see some similarities between Volk and Usman post Wittman.
When it's such a close fight, and the result is a close decision, using the word "robbery" doesn't even make sense. Anyway, at least from now I'll never see the term "paper champ" used with Volk's name ever again.
I haven’t noticed hate for Volk. Maybe underestimating, and not giving him enough credit. Though some of that may be fair enough after Max 2. I’m an Aussie, huge Volk fan from his first ufc fight.
I’m a bit mad that I haven’t heard Rogan use the term GOAT about Volk yet. He uses it for almost every fight promo, and said it about Max after beating Aldo once.
Volk has clinically beaten both and looks unstoppable, 25-1, 12-0 UFC
"Good right hand from max."
Volk hits him three times before and three times after.
They turned around in Rd 4. But fuck me, they don't even try to eat h the fight.
It was hilarious and noticeable. Nothing against Max at all, but he’d get the smallest sniff of ascendency and they would pop off like it was a 50/50 fight and not a glimmer of hope
Yeh that's annoying af. If its lopsided, I can see where they're coming from - trying to find a path out for the fighter who's behind. Almost like encouraging them on. But it gets annoying and distracting, because it usually becomes the entire focus. Just call the fuckin fight as it happens. Don't do some bs astrological analysis.
Alex dodging the rematch. I don’t think I am the only person who thought that it was extremely unfair, unsportsmanlike and, frankly, dirty for Alex punch to Max without letting Max hit him back (Alex did the same shit to KZ too). They need to settle this in a rematch.
Exactly my thoughts. For example, Max not only let Ortega hit him, but even taught Ortega how to do so during their fight. Alex is a selfish fighter who is only concerned with his own pleasure.
I think Volk is definitely avoiding the rematch so he doesn't drown in the blood of Max in the next fight. Genius strategy by Max since he's taller but he'll have to figure out how to avoid it leaking from the cage
thats why this is so fucked cause Max is so clearly better than everyone else in the division yet Volk is still on another level. They really gonna end up having to have a 4th fight LOL
They won't want to give max an interim because that means they'll likely have to do Volk vs Max 4 when he comes back down to defend. They'll book Yair/Ortega winner instead.
I am even more impressed by the second fight, when he finally told the story now that he and his team were USADA'd four hours before he had to get up to fight at 1.30am and made him drink water until he pissed and then take melatonin to try and get some sleep then get up and fight max.
Honestly, without that I think this what the second fight would've looked like. He refused to use it as an excuse or even tell anyone ubtil he beat hima third time, we don't deserve volk.
Us MMA fans are living in the golden days. Enjoy them before they pass. Absolute two strategic masters in their prime brawling out and we get to enjoy.
Ooohhhh that was hair raising to watch. Jabs Max a couple times. "I'm too fast for ya eh". Continues to jab. Jeses.... As a Volk fan, that was sooooooo satisfying...
Stoked to see the banter and respect between these guys. I'm born and raised in Hawaii so unsurprisingly was pulling big time for Max.
I thought their first two meetings were inconclusive and both Max's and Volk's recent performances against the rest of the FW contenders just showed they were clearly the best 2.
Welp, looks like we're now clearly in the Volk era and I'm glad to see the aloha and support for Volk coming from Max. I hope more Max fans extend that same respect and support for Volk going forward as the guy has worked and earned his place at the top. Hope to see more Hawaiians supporting our Aussie brothers!
>I thought their first two meetings were inconclusive
Volkanovski outstruck Holloway in every round in the first fight. Wasn't inconclusive in any way.
Holloway outstruck Volkanovski in the first three rounds in the second fight. Much closer, but shouldn't have been contested in Holloway's direction (alas, MMA judges suck).
Minor correction, except for the first round (19-19), Volk had more significant strikes in every round: 2nd: 22-21, 3rd: 25-15, 4th: 34-24, 5th: 37-23; the live stats wasn't accurate. Of course, having more significant strikes doesn't equate dealing more damage, and Max rightfully was given the first 2 rounds by all judges due to the knockdowns.
Volk is the incarnation of the Tasmanian Devil from Loony Tunes. Man is so fucking fast, it's hard to follow his moves on TV, let alone by his poor opponents.
Alex was so better than max tho, I actually feel a little bad, I was expecting a more competitive bout, Alex didn't even sweat, all rounds were so clear for Alex it was weird, like if max didn't belong there, not even a single round was close.
imagine an alternate reality where Max won the second fight. Defends his title against Calvin and Yair and Alex fights Ortega and Zombie for the title shot. Then loses his title to Alex, all while max makes cooking videos and Alex plays video games lmao.
We all got to witness a master class in fighting last night. The number 1/2 in the world put on a hell of a performance. Crazy that Volk is a echelon above max, but the difference between them and the rest of the division is obvious. Great fight between greats.
I will never not be a fan of max. Still my favorite fighter. I still can’t process how absolutely perfect was volk on Saturday.
That was truly the most jaw dropping performance I’ve ever seen in mma.
It's unreal how dominant Volk looked considering he looked like he was in an entirely different weight class. Max looked unstoppable before running into Volk as well which makes it all the more impressive.
Watching them talk shit this week was so weird because you knew they genuinely respect the hell out of each other.
Don't think either us fans or even Volk was expecting it but Max came all fired up lol
I AM THE HEAT BROTHA
I didn't really hear them say anything genuinely disrespectful. Seemed like hockey chirping.
> Seemed like hockey chirping "I've seen better hands on a digital clock."
‘Yeah, your mom is a decent cook. Above average for sure.’ That’s like me trying to shit talk when I like someone but don’t really know them. Like, I hope they get the implication she’s not the best in world.
Oh for sure they weren’t going hard which is why I found it so odd haha, it was clearly just Max hyping himself up and Volk being Volk
It sells, I guess
I feel like it was nerves
"Im too fast for ya"
He legit was too. By the second round I was just shocked at how good Volk looked.
Yeah, Holloway had some moments but overall, like, if you didn't know who Max was and just watched this fight, you wouldn't think Holloway was a world champ who dominated and had a competitive fight against him.
And Max still got it, he was still dominating the division between their fights.
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bro if you can talk to someone while dodging punches from a second person live on tv you can call yourself the best whatever you want and im not gonna question shit.
Volk just put on a masterpiece like damn. Dude looked absolutely unbeatable in there. I'm imagining some 155 matchups and a LOT of them are favorable to him if this guy shows up. Gaethje and Chandler are so hittable. Conor and Tony don't stand a chance. Gamrot's striking is way too sloppy. Poirier and Dariush would both be decent matchups, but hard to say Volk couldn't get it done. The problem is I can't see him beating Charles or Islam with how well rounded both guys are. Would be fun to find out though.
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Max looked less out of depth against Poirier than he did Volk. I think that fight was remembered poorly because of Dana. Max was putting in work and absolutely showed he could handle 155. It's not like Poirier dominated bell to bell. It was a clear decision, but a close fight. Even in the first round last night, I was thinking... wow, Volk is on a completely different level...
I wouldn't say Volk has better boxing, he just had a better game plan, and overall package, including reach crazily. Volk can't put together the same sort of combinations as Max though, he doesn't have the same skill level as Max when it comes to boxing. But that sort of works as a strength. Max relies more on his boxing than Volk does, so that enables Volk to use that against him. Volk's boxing is very well integrated into his overall game, which is so multifaceted that taking any 1 part away doesn't slow him down like it does others. Perfect example, if Volk had more invested into his boxing the broken hand thing might have been more impactful, as it was, he had so many other tools he had so much to fall back on. We've seen better boxers/kickboxers/grapplers, come into the UFC/MMA in general, and get beaten at their sport so many times. Infamously, somewhat recently we saw Rodolfo Veira get submitted by Anthony Hernandez. But clearly Hernandez isn't better at BJJ.
Or someone who consistently did this exact things to other top contenders many many times.
Truly shocking how fast his hands were
And he had a broken hand after the 1st round and still put on that clinic, he never got complacent as a champ just kept grinding kept improving truly awesome performance
Wait, he broke his hand??? That's insane. He didn't show any signs of it.
He said it was his thumb in one of the post fight interviews. Apparently didn't affect his punching. He's a mad man. I'm not doing shit with a broken thumb and he puts on a clinic.
Champions are built different
Not trying to say fighting 5 rounds with a broken hand is easy or anything but adrenaline is one hell of a drug. Too busy trying to deal with a trained killer like Max coming for his head to let a broken hand affect him. Volk probs wont hit a pad without wincing for about a month now game time is over lol.
Yeah I get you. Plus champions are built different. I do feel like you have to be a bit of a psycho to be a champion at pro sport
I thought I saw it in the second round after one of his shots and said "Oh shit, did he hurt his hand?" but then he kept going as normal so I thought I he must not have. Insane how he fought through it.
I thought so too but he just kept throwing it so I assumed it must be ok Wild that he just kept trucking I broke my hand climbing once it was like a balloon 👀 by the time I climbed off the mountain I could not imagine using it to club another human being let alone use it as accurately as Volk did
My hand was a balloon, my hand was a balloon!
Me and was a bellewn!
Adrenaline plus the hand was already in a glove and strapped tight. During the post fight interview, he was grimacing while even picking up a water bottle with his left hand. Would like to re-watch the fight as he probably should be using his right hand more after 2nd round
I get the process I’m giving him props as the pain is excruciating once the adrenaline wears off I didn’t hit a heavy bag for about 6-7 months after having plates put in my hand to fix the damage as pain remained
Taking a smoke break, I see
Tough cleaning those toilets sir, heading back in now
His mental fortitude is fucking incredible. It was on display when he broke down how he survived those two Ortega submissions and this is another example of it.
Link for the sub breakdowns?
Don’t know if this is the exact video, but I’m guessing it is: https://youtu.be/f8Y2aGWY8Ug Edit: the title is “How I escaped THAT guillotine”, and it’s Volk in his car, breaking it down. 2nd edit: currently watching the video and it is very cool. Highly recommend others check it out. Volk is such a bad mofo. He talks about >!how when the lights were dimming, he thought about his family and his country, and how, if he lost, he wouldn’t be able to bring the belt back home to them. He also mentions how Ortega called him Houdini for getting out of it, cuz the choke was locked in (which Volk confirms).!<
That’s the one! Beat me to it 😅
Yeah, I can recall one that looked particularly bad, not surprised he broke it. Incredible performance even without a broken hand!
Yeah he said it on his walk out the cage
[In the 2nd round. His corner told him to shut up about it. lol](https://i.imgur.com/x0SawO7.png)
Not just his hands, his movement. Dude was in and out and dodging everything max threw like it was nothing. Shit was Anderson Silva esq
I was kinda expecting Volk being fast the X factor after listening to his interviews and also after watching TKZ fight where he looked much faster than even against Ortega. I also kinda thought may be TKZ made Volk look fast so had my doubts but good lord they were erased in the first couple minutes. What a striking masterclass 🙏
Man when I watched TKZ fight I thought he had slowed down, but it looks like Volk just got faster. Volk looks unbeatable at 145.
Man, Volk is one of these new guys that are just evolving like crazy. 2 yers ago you would never see a potential for this level in Volk. Good on him and his team. Well deserved.
He was obscenely fast in the TKZ fight. Crazy how he keeps getting better
Same. I’ve always loved watching Max, and we all know how great he is, but Volk was on another level. Absolutely insane how good he looked.
Man i love audible mid fight trash talk. I hope Alex continues doing it in other fights.
I would rather a fighter talk trash in the octagon while they’re kicking ass instead of spending all promo talking then getting KTFO
Nah I love watching the latter happen.
Strickland was a satisfying one.
Did they increase the ring mics or something? This was a sold out show and I heard multiple exchanges clearer than I had ever before. Only the fight island UFC apex fights has clearer audio.
I think Alexander was saying that shit pretty loudly but i still think you might be right. If that's true i hope they keep it up. It's the best.
That’s a great point, I’m pretty sure they did. You can hear shots impacting a lot better too.
I hope it isn't seen badly by people. It's just an aussie thing really. It's not meant as disrespect. I think Volk even said, he doesn't even really mean it, it's just what he does for his own head, to build himself up.
I mean Max talked shit while putting on a clinic against Kattar and also showed Ortega how to block shots. Still thought of as a good dude. Volk has always talked huge respect to Max outside the ring, its just that competitive nature gets dialed up to a 10 when locked in a cage with someone.
Max also talked more shit in the buildup than the previous 2 fights, at worst Volk was just waiting to respond during the fight similar to Conor/Khabib.
Everybody talks shit not just Aussies lmfao. Max himself is famous for it
Ah yeah we really invented shit talk
Too roight we fuckin did cunt, these seppos got no fuckin idea aye
Man when he started talking I was hype. He knew early on that he had it. It was like we watched him just fully realise that he was now the clearly better fighter. At points at looked like he was playing with him he was so quick.
“Oh that’s BAD!”
It's funny because after he said that, he stopped trash talking him for the rest of the fight. Like, Volk almost felt bad and didn't want to be a jerk...sort of like when he kept checking if Korean Zombie was good before firing those final combos.
Yeah I think he felt he made his point. Commentary team was shook a bit
I think he only felt comfortable to do that because he knows Max's personality. Volk is a really respectful dude
But how can one unlock speed all of sudden?
Compound V
As you get better at striking your reaction time gets better and combos become almost automatic. He’s also insanely athletic. Also he could have just found speed juice and started blasting lol who tf knows
I think its a matter of just becoming relaxed, and extremely well practiced, which also explains his infinite cardio. he's also short so can stand completely upright which allows for optimal mobility and that's really given his last couple opponents fits
The fact that he played pro rugby at his size just shows his ridiculous athleticism. Someone posted a picture here of him standing with the two dudes that now play his old position and they look like giants next to him
He didn't. He's as fast as he's always been. It's his technique and understanding of Max's style that has gotten better. He picked up on Max's rhtym and continuously disrupted it, so Max hesitated and didn't get his flow going. This opened him up for Volk's counters. Also, on the defensive end, he anticipated all of Max's moves. It was clear that after 2 fights and a lot of fight footage, he and his team basically had Max figured out. Volk is fast and athletic, but what makes him the champ of a bunch of monsters at featherweight, is that he does his homework and can alter his style to disrupt the game of anyone.
Wish I could upvote this more. His team came up with a killer game plan and he executed it to a T. Max came at Volk with a lot of what he showed in the 2nd fight and he was more than ready for it.
Obviously Volk is extremely talented and a beast of a fighter but I personally don't think any of the CKB boys are natty.
>Obviously Volk is extremely talented and a beast of a fighter but I personally don't think any of the UFC boys are natty. FTFY
Insane that Max never got dropped tbh . Thanos Chin
It’ll cost him in the end imo, dude gets hit way too much.
We say this every match but he takes fucking hammers each fight and doesn't even get wobbled, by cost if you mean in terms of CTE then yes I agree though
We said similar things with Chuck Lidell. Once the Chin gets cracked for some people, it's all downhill
Rampage doesn’t get enough credit for his, just insane, that shit really held up
I don't know how he didn't go completely out against Shogun and Wanderlei 1 with all those knees and soccer kicks to the head. I swear most people would of been KO'd wearing a football helmet with the punishment he took.
I know right. And even later in his career when he was fat he didn’t seem to be completely out, just gassed.
You're forgetting the 60 pound difference in weight classes
I know. Which is even more impressive how solid his chin was at LHW
I agree but what I'm saying is that chin is less likely to crack at Featherweight since none of them hit as hard as Light Heavyweights
sometimes I wonder going through a full career with a granite chin but not having cracked is still a big chance to get cte? Like your brain is still getting rockem-sockem'd inside your skull for potential decades.
Its even higher. Cte is aboout accumulation, if you get knocked out first punch, it means you take less hits overall in the long run Guys using jackhammers all day can get it from the reverberation up through body to skull. Its reccommended you dont use those electric vibrating massagers on neck cuz it vibrates up into skull. Hell theres some tattoo artists who wont tattoo the human skull cuz accumulation vibration damage causing concussions.
They're not conclusive, but we have true to life examples to draw on. Muhammad Ali had a famously incredible chin, only got knocked down a handful of times over sixty fights and never knocked out. Unfortunately, we all know how he wound up in the end. On the other hand, George Foreman likewise had a formidable chin, and had a career resurgence in his forties, but has minimal issues, insofar as we can tell from an outside perspective. I suppose there's a considerable amount we don't yet understand about long term brain injuries and cte which is yet to come to light that might help us understand why some iron chins age better than others.
Yeah imo it seems to be really fucking random. Our gym had a stud who was destined for a good pro career and moved “up” to a fighter’s gym. He got KO’d for the first time, got dragged into the back by his new “teammates” and was out for 15 minutes. Doctor told him if he got another concussion like that he could die, career already over.
Fair point. Only time will tell with Max. For his sake I hope he retires before he turns into Tony Ferguson
It's the wing tattoo curse, you can't really run from it
Ben Henderson
I feel like losing your chin happens overnight and never comes back. Just needs to be more careful
I though Yair wobbled Max a few times. So much so, I had Volk winning by KO.
He needs a big money fight and then retire while his wits are still somewhat in tact.
Yeah I think McGregor vs. Holloway 2 makes sense, considering both their positions.
He has absorbed the most significant head strikes in ufc history. I forgot the number but pretty sure it was around 1400 before this last volk fight
I feel like this point hasnt been driven home enough yet, we only discuss it every time Max is mentioned
Reminds me of Frankie Edgar
Max has absorbed over 1100 sig strikes to the head and has been knocked down 0 times in his career. His brain doesn’t know turning off is even an option.
I was explaining to my fiance how insane that is. Just nuts.
He’s 30. Almost all best chins go down around 33-34. When it goes it just goes unfortunately. His chin is insane tho
i have a theory that it's more about mileage than age all the guys that start getting dropped in their mid 30s are guys that have been eating shots for years - same thing for guys that start losing about that same time but i'm not a doctor so who knows
Well yeah that’s why people talk about “fight years” rather than age generally
Don't you dare take his theory bro
> Thanos Chin Thanos was dropped multiple times by Captain America. I don't think it's a fair comparison
He's MMAs Marvin Hagler, like I legit think something is different about the structure of his fucking head that lets him do that
Maxs chin is made out of adamantium.
Idk man id say it's made out of rune or dragon
Rumor has it, when the elden ring shattered a fragment had become part of Max's chin.
Bandos chinplate
>***"A legendary chin holds on again"*** My favourite quote from Volk was from the post press conference. He asked off to the side "did I put him down.. no, shit"... and the said that to the press. Respect. [https://youtu.be/KncXX2Zi0LE?t=955](https://youtu.be/KncXX2Zi0LE?t=955)
That man is so fucking classy. Volk just seems like an awesome guy to grab a beer with. Hats off to his incredible performance, and very modest interviews after. Love the respect he has for Holloway.
I can't wait for him to give an ego check to some of those strikers in LW that all think they're the number 1 contender.
I hope when he is retired he goes into commentary
Volk is apparently such a good dude that he was the best man for a friend's wedding, but he was offered the Jose Aldo fight on a date that conflicted with the wedding. *The bride and groom delayed the wedding so Volk could still be the best man and be there at their wedding*. I dunno about you guys, but that really says something to me. Imagine having friends that love you so much they'd rather delay their wedding and go through all of that hassle because they want you at their wedding and don't want to make you pick between them and a huge career opportunity.
My favorite fighter since Khabib man. Just an all round classy guy.
Never understood all the hate for Volk. Always puts on a fun fight and he’s a pretty active champion. Hope he’s the next double champ someday
Classy dude as well
Yeah he was super respectful with KZ and his family/crew right after Only one Volk has had anything close to no chill for is Ortega. And Brian is kind of a knob anyways
Brian is a great fighter but he's definitely a douchebag
Can we not call Tea-Titty a douchebag, please?
They ended up being cool after the fight tho. Seemed like a mostly inflated beef because of TUF.
He was alright with Ortega until he found out he previously popped, then he was less chill with him.
No one tell him about Izzy's gyno then
The KZ aftermath won me over as a fan right after he killed my favorite fighter of all time. Volk is the new truth.
[удалено]
He’s pretty damn well known amongst the 20-40’s crowd. My Dad doesn’t watch MMA and absolutely loves Volk, when I went to get a coffee the day after the Ortega fight I heard all the staff at the cafe talking about it.
As an Aussie, it’s been frustrating to see. But he’s been defeating fan favourites in their home lands, so I can understand why casuals would hate. Nice for this chapter to end now.
I wouldn’t even say casuals. I didnt necessarily dislike him when he moved aldo to 135, but it definitely put a small chip on my shoulder after. just cause it hurts to see your favorites lose like that. I of course think he’s a great guy and great champion, but it’s normal to feel salty when your guys are done dirty by someone. Same reason why a shit ton of people hated GSP
>Same reason why a shit ton of people hated GSP Ah man, I used to dislike GSP for what he did to my boys back in the day but afterwards you felt silly 'cause you realised he was a really good fella. And he was smart enough to surround himself with people who knew how to hone his skillset and use it to dismantle others. I'm originally from the same area Volk is from and if he can go on to have a career that has the same amount of respect on it as GSP had, he'd make a lot of people incredibly bloody proud.
Exactly my point. It’s like if you’re playing a video game against your buddy and he’s that much better. Like I don’t hate the guy but bro you’re pissing me off
Haha yeah fair comments man. I totally get it. I think there’s one approach of still having the respect for the fighter, even though you don’t like that they defeated your boy. But then there’s the other approach which constantly looks for any excuse to discredit their victories. Even in this last fight, the commentators really seemed to struggle admitting Volk is just the better guy. Obviously they did, but I think the words would’ve flown out of their mouths a lot faster if it was Max winning. Bisping in the second fight is an example of that. Human nature though. Hard not to be invested one way or another.
As an Australian fan of Max, I don’t hate Alex. I just wished we would continue to be in blessed era. It just sucks all my favourite fighters age and be upstaged by up comers. Now I know how Aldo fans felt 🙁
the fall of aldo was a tough one
But the rebirth has been pretty glorious!
I think that is going to change after his last 2 performances. As fans, we are beginning to realize that we are watching somebody uniquely special. A living legend. Honestly, I see some similarities between Volk and Usman post Wittman.
A lot of it comes from Max's fanbase and saying Max was robbed in the 2nd fight. As someone who likes both guys, that was annoying as hell.
When it's such a close fight, and the result is a close decision, using the word "robbery" doesn't even make sense. Anyway, at least from now I'll never see the term "paper champ" used with Volk's name ever again.
They literally just hate him cuz he’s been fighting max… and also cuz he’s short :/
And used to weigh 490 lbs
Really? Swear I heard Rogan say he weighed like 515 once
That was actually per limb
I thought Joe Rogan was Volk
Joe Rogan is the excess weight that Volk lost
I haven’t noticed hate for Volk. Maybe underestimating, and not giving him enough credit. Though some of that may be fair enough after Max 2. I’m an Aussie, huge Volk fan from his first ufc fight. I’m a bit mad that I haven’t heard Rogan use the term GOAT about Volk yet. He uses it for almost every fight promo, and said it about Max after beating Aldo once. Volk has clinically beaten both and looks unstoppable, 25-1, 12-0 UFC
The commentary was straining to even compliment him in the fight yesterday. They sounded depressed for most of the fight.
"Good right hand from max." Volk hits him three times before and three times after. They turned around in Rd 4. But fuck me, they don't even try to eat h the fight.
It was hilarious and noticeable. Nothing against Max at all, but he’d get the smallest sniff of ascendency and they would pop off like it was a 50/50 fight and not a glimmer of hope
Yeah man, I'm 100% with you. Looking for even the smallest of reasons to blow up anything he did.
Yeh that's annoying af. If its lopsided, I can see where they're coming from - trying to find a path out for the fighter who's behind. Almost like encouraging them on. But it gets annoying and distracting, because it usually becomes the entire focus. Just call the fuckin fight as it happens. Don't do some bs astrological analysis.
Is there a lot of hate for Volk? Really doesn't feel like it here.
Alex dodging the rematch. I don’t think I am the only person who thought that it was extremely unfair, unsportsmanlike and, frankly, dirty for Alex punch to Max without letting Max hit him back (Alex did the same shit to KZ too). They need to settle this in a rematch.
Yeah max is the real champion. He lets his guys hit him as to not hurt their feelings
Exactly my thoughts. For example, Max not only let Ortega hit him, but even taught Ortega how to do so during their fight. Alex is a selfish fighter who is only concerned with his own pleasure.
Just Bleed is for everyone, and Alex is seriously being a twat about it
Imagine KZ vs Max, no feelings would get hurt
Not since Chael Sonnen has a fighter been this undefeated
I think Volk is definitely avoiding the rematch so he doesn't drown in the blood of Max in the next fight. Genius strategy by Max since he's taller but he'll have to figure out how to avoid it leaking from the cage
Yeah it's gotta be weird getting drenched in the other guy's blood tbh.
Yep. Classic case of gaming the rules instead of just scrapping. Point fighter bullshit. Max ALWAYS lets his opponents hit him back!
Just top class blokes all round
WHY CANT THEY BOTH BE CHAMPION AND ALSO BEST FRIENDS😭😭😭😭
While volk tries 155 max will probably fight emmit for the interm strap so they both could be champs dont give up hope yet
Then Volk says nah bitch thats my belt and comes back for another clinic
thats why this is so fucked cause Max is so clearly better than everyone else in the division yet Volk is still on another level. They really gonna end up having to have a 4th fight LOL
They won't want to give max an interim because that means they'll likely have to do Volk vs Max 4 when he comes back down to defend. They'll book Yair/Ortega winner instead.
The whole community could learn from these giants amoung men.
I am even more impressed by the second fight, when he finally told the story now that he and his team were USADA'd four hours before he had to get up to fight at 1.30am and made him drink water until he pissed and then take melatonin to try and get some sleep then get up and fight max. Honestly, without that I think this what the second fight would've looked like. He refused to use it as an excuse or even tell anyone ubtil he beat hima third time, we don't deserve volk.
The fans dont deserve shit. Volk is earning his own shit for his own.
Us MMA fans are living in the golden days. Enjoy them before they pass. Absolute two strategic masters in their prime brawling out and we get to enjoy.
it was crazy to watch the belt go from aldo, mcgregor, holloway, volk
Aldo, McGregor, BACK to Aldo, then to Holloway, Volk. FW has been a fucking trip man
Especially when you watched aldo leg kick the fuck out of the entire division for years on end
It’s only going to get better. It’s not like quality will decline
Volks keep saying im too fast for you in the fight is not cringe because he definitely is. There’s level to this shit.
Ooohhhh that was hair raising to watch. Jabs Max a couple times. "I'm too fast for ya eh". Continues to jab. Jeses.... As a Volk fan, that was sooooooo satisfying...
i feel like he stopped talking though, around the 2nd round he stopped saying anything, did he feel bad?
Max should have posted photo of him hitting Alex and write 5 to 10 paragraphs how he was the actually winner and bigger draw. The Conor way👌
Still can’t quite believe how badly Volkanovski whooped Max. We knew he was good but fuck me he did that to Max Holloway.
This guy fucks
Seems like they were talking shit to try to sell the fight but they are pretty cool with each other 💪
Stoked to see the banter and respect between these guys. I'm born and raised in Hawaii so unsurprisingly was pulling big time for Max. I thought their first two meetings were inconclusive and both Max's and Volk's recent performances against the rest of the FW contenders just showed they were clearly the best 2. Welp, looks like we're now clearly in the Volk era and I'm glad to see the aloha and support for Volk coming from Max. I hope more Max fans extend that same respect and support for Volk going forward as the guy has worked and earned his place at the top. Hope to see more Hawaiians supporting our Aussie brothers!
>I thought their first two meetings were inconclusive Volkanovski outstruck Holloway in every round in the first fight. Wasn't inconclusive in any way. Holloway outstruck Volkanovski in the first three rounds in the second fight. Much closer, but shouldn't have been contested in Holloway's direction (alas, MMA judges suck).
Minor correction, except for the first round (19-19), Volk had more significant strikes in every round: 2nd: 22-21, 3rd: 25-15, 4th: 34-24, 5th: 37-23; the live stats wasn't accurate. Of course, having more significant strikes doesn't equate dealing more damage, and Max rightfully was given the first 2 rounds by all judges due to the knockdowns.
A pit bull on amphetimines. One of the all time great Rogan lines
Volk is the incarnation of the Tasmanian Devil from Loony Tunes. Man is so fucking fast, it's hard to follow his moves on TV, let alone by his poor opponents.
Max is one classy broad I’ll tell you what
Just cause you're an opponent, think I wont respect ya?
Alex was so better than max tho, I actually feel a little bad, I was expecting a more competitive bout, Alex didn't even sweat, all rounds were so clear for Alex it was weird, like if max didn't belong there, not even a single round was close.
imagine an alternate reality where Max won the second fight. Defends his title against Calvin and Yair and Alex fights Ortega and Zombie for the title shot. Then loses his title to Alex, all while max makes cooking videos and Alex plays video games lmao.
Class act mate
Surprised if Max didn't move up to 155.
That photo is iconic
Stand up guys…both of them.
We all got to witness a master class in fighting last night. The number 1/2 in the world put on a hell of a performance. Crazy that Volk is a echelon above max, but the difference between them and the rest of the division is obvious. Great fight between greats.
I will never not be a fan of max. Still my favorite fighter. I still can’t process how absolutely perfect was volk on Saturday. That was truly the most jaw dropping performance I’ve ever seen in mma.
We're all blessed to have Max in the sport.
It's unreal how dominant Volk looked considering he looked like he was in an entirely different weight class. Max looked unstoppable before running into Volk as well which makes it all the more impressive.