Oleg Taktarov named Volkov’s most advantageous opponent to qualify for title

Russian MMA fighter Oleg Tactarov told that the heavyweight Alexander Volkov must have a rematch with 38-year-old American Derrick Lewis.

In 2018, Volkov lost to Lewis by knockout in the last minute of the third round in a fight at UFC 229. In total, the Russian has four defeats in the UFC: in addition to Lewis, he lost to Curtis Blaydes, Tom Aspinall and Cyrille Gan.

Volkov previously defeated Tai Tuivasa at UFC 293 in Sydney and is soon expected to reach at least sixth place in the UFC heavyweight rankings.

— Is it true that Volkov won through technique?

— It’s nice, but it’s already the icing on the cake. What is important here is that Volkov basically dominated, that he [Туиваса] I’ve already given up. If he has a revenge, he must impose his own. At 35, you don’t learn anything new; there, in decisive battles, you have to do what you do best. The chance of him strangling Aspinall is almost zero. And the percentage that he will knock him out or break him while standing is close to a hundred.

— Who should he face a rematch with to make it an event in the USA?

“Psychologically and for the public, he has to fight Derrick Lewis. If he knocks him out, that’s good. Everything went well with Gan; it’s unlikely anyone will want to watch this fight. If Volkov is a little more confident, he will survive Ghana. He will definitely win on points. Aspinall doesn’t seem like such a bright guy, he won, but somehow it wasn’t very noticeable. But if he knocks out old Derrick Lewis, people will want to see him in a title fight. These are the people who will want to watch it,” Taktarov told .

Open a video

Live broadcasts of mixed martial arts tournaments can be seen on and Match! Fighter”, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.