Athletistic/MMA. Former Bellator middleweight champion Russian Alexander Shlemenko shared his expectations for the main event fight of the UFC 294 tournament between his compatriot Islam Makhachev and Australian Alexander Volkanovski. Shlemenko also spoke about the confrontation between Khamzat Chimaev and Kamaru Usman.
“Makhachev and Chimaev have short-term opponents. One of them is not in his weight category. This is Kamaru Usman. I don’t remember the Nigerian fighting in the weight category until at 84 kg, I haven’t seen a single one of his fights. That is to say, his advantage is the fact that he is heavy, strong, that he breathes well, this time will be compensated by the fact that he moved to a heavier weight. Therefore, for me, the favorites here are Islam and Khamzat. They prepared specifically for this tournament, they are more powerful and stronger. That’s why I think they will win.
But it is unlikely that they will be able to win sooner than expected. Their rivals aren’t weak either. It is much easier to last the entire fight than to win or finish. Therefore, Volkanovski and Usman have enough strength to hold on,” Shlemenko said, as quoted by Metaratings.ru.
UFC 294 will take place on October 21 in Abu Dhabi (UAE). Islam Makhachev is the organization’s lightweight champion and Alexander Volkanovski is the promotion’s current champion in the featherweight division.
Source: Sport
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
