American Kickboxing Academy head coach Javier Mendez doesn’t see Alexander Volkanovski giving Islam Makhachev much of a challenge.
With UFC featherweight champion Volkanovski (25-1 MMA, 12-0 UFC) eyeing a move up to lightweight, he could end up crossing paths with Makhachev (22-1 MMA, 11-1 UFC) in the near future. But Mendez thinks Makhachev’s ground game will be too much for the dominant 145-pound champ.
“I don’t think he poses as big a threat to Islam as you would think because he’s such a master on the takedown, and Alex isn’t going to be able to stop it no matter what he does,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “And Islam’s stand up is so damn good that he can stand with him. So, you know, unless Alex’s ground improves tremendously, I don’t see it as a huge threat to Islam.”
On the contrary, Mendez sees one half of the next lightweight title fight, Charles Oliveira (33-8 MMA, 21-8 UFC), as much bigger threat than Volkanovski. Oliveira was stripped of his lightweight title prior to submitting Justin Gaethje at UFC 274 due to missing weight, and Makhachev is a frontrunner to fight him next.
“I see Oliveira as a huge threat, but I don’t see Alex,” Mendez said. “Only because he ain’t gonna be able to stop Islam from taking it to the ground, and I just don’t think he can handle Islam’s ground game.”
Why Javier Mendez doesn’t consider UFC champ Alexander Volkanovski big threat to Islam Makhachev