Apr 8, 2022; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Alexander Volkanovski on the scale during weigh ins for UFC 273 at VyStar Veterans Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Yeazell-USA TODAY Sports
Alexander Volkanovski puts on an all-around clinic against Chan Sung Jung.
UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski used to have doubters, but now he’s emerged as arguably one of the all-time great UFC fighters following a showcase performance against Chan Sung Jung at UFC 273.
Volkanovski found his rhythm on the feet in the opening minutes against Jung. His speed, combined with his ability to dictate range, gave Jung all kinds of fits throughout the fight.
Volkanovski also had his way in the grappling aspect of the bout, smothering Jung and landing some hard ground-and-pound. He also was able to control Jung in the clinch and land some stiff knees to the body.
After three rounds of destruction, Volkanovski hit Jung with a flurry of punches in Round 4 that forced referee Herb Dean to step in and stop the action.
Alexander Volkanovski is one of the pound-for-pound best
Volkanovski came into UFC 273 riding high off of a wild win over Brian Ortega at UFC 266. Despite being as close as you can get to submission twice against Ortega, he earned a unanimous decision win for his second consecutive title defense.
Volkanovski earned the title over Max Holloway at UFC 245, before squeaking out a split decision in an immediate rematch at UFC 251. He entered this fight with Jung undefeated in his UFC tenure.
Jung, otherwise known as ‘The Korean Zombie’, was making his second career featherweight title challenger after a loss to Jose Aldo at UFC 163. He most recently earned wins over the likes of Dan Ige, Frankie Edgar, and Renato Moicano to earn the title shot.
Volkanovski holds on to the featherweight throne, and could potentially face Holloway in a trilogy later this year.