Alexander Volkov explains where he's been, weighs options in new UFC heavyweight landscape

USA Today

09-07-2025

Alexander Volkov needed a break, so he took one.
But now, his time away from competition is coming to an end. With the UFC heavyweight divisional landscape much different than it was when he fought in December, Volkov (38-11 MMA, 12-5 UFC) is eying a fall return.
"Everything is good," Volkov told MMA Junkie on Tuesday. "I just took a small break for myself. I trained and competed in grappling and then I decided to take a break and vacation for myself. I visited Russian, which is my home. Now, I've come back and I'm ready to prepare for my new fight. ... Now, we know Jon Jones retired and things moved on. Maybe it's time to come back, to have a good fight, and maybe after, fight for the belt."
Volkov, like many viewers, still doesn't agree with the judges' decision that cost him his UFC 310 bout vs. Ciryl Gane in December. The fight was highly controversial, with Dana White telling Volkov, "You got f*cked" when referring to the decision.
But with that said, Volkov found growth in the moment. He admitted he may have become complacent had he won. Instead, he became more determined than ever.
"I have no problem with it right now," Volkov said. "Emotionally, I had bad feelings from the fight. I did a lot. I trained a lot. It was a really hard camp for me. I had some injuries. I had some of my own problems, a lot of things. It was a rematch for me. It was in Las Vegas, where I live now. A lot of things put me in a bad position to lose here. After, I just stopped thinking about what I could do better this fight, what I should do better. ... I think I did a good job, a good fight with him. For myself, I won.
"It's a (fact) of course who won for real. But for myself, I won. I got better in this fight. For sure, this fight gave me more opportunity to grow up, after this loss. Because if I won, I would've thought everything was good, everything was OK. 'I'm not needing to train any more. I'm ready for the best of the best.' But now, after losing, I started thinking about myself in a different way, how to learn more, and how to get better. I'm not worried about this loss any more."
With Jon Jones retired and Tom Aspinall the undisputed champion, Volkov isn't totally sure where he fits into the heavyweight puzzle. He confirmed a matchup vs. Jailton Almeida was discussed multiple times with the UFC, but indicated he's warmed up to the idea, should the promotion not offer him a title shot.
"I could fight for the title any time the UFC asks me to fight," Volkov said. "I'm ready for it 100 percent. But the decision is made by another person, not me. This is why I think I don't want to say I need to wait or something, because it's a bad position also. After my loss, I don't have a good position to say I want to fight for the title or the belt. I understand this sport. I have my last fight as a loss in my stats. I should go out first and maybe have one fight and go to the title then. I don't know who it should be. Maybe you can help me because I hear a lot about Almeida as well. Maybe him, maybe another fighter. ... Maybe it makes sense to fight with him because we're contenders for the belt. Now, it looks like an interesting fight for me."
Curtis Blaydes is another fighter who has called for a fight vs. Volkov. The two faced off in June 2020 and Blaydes won by unanimous decision. Volkov wouldn't mind trying to get that one back. One way or another, Volkov said he hopes to return in October or November and fight for the title by early 2026.
"If they speak about title fight, I could fight any time they ask me. If they speak about a regular fight for me, I'll fight after maybe October. So October or November is OK. ... I could fight with Curtis, as well. Curtis fought Almeida if I remember (correctly). It's a really good match for me and rematch as well for me. It's a good match, also. It should be possible as well. I think I need to think about it: Almeida, Blaydes. Both of them are really similar-style fighters. Both of them will use grappling and wrestling skills with me. It's really similar, Almeida to Blaydes. Blaydes is more interesting because I lose to him before in a very close fight. It'll be a really good chance to get him back, this loss. I like most of them. We'll see. For sure, I would prefer if UFC would tell me it was a mistake my last fight and give me a title shot. But October or November, I could fight with anybody."
Should Volkov earn that crack at gold and should Aspinall (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) still be the one to hold the title, it would be a rematch of their March 2022 bout. Aspinall defeated Volkov by submission inside one round. Volkov isn't sure exactly how the second fight would be different, but he's enthralled by the process of trying to figure it out.
"Yes, it's a really good question," Volkov said. "It's a really good question for me, as well. I need to be more ... in this fight. It's hard to say. Because the first fight, I wasn't really serious with it because of many things happening in the world at this time. Now, I changed my game, my location with leaving my training partners and coaches. Everything is different and I showed progress after. I believe if I sit with his videos, watch all his videos and see his moves, I could win this fight."