Russian UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev on he admitted that he did not plan in advance how he would behave and what he would say after the fight with the Australian Alexander Volkanovski .
On Saturday, October 21, Makhachev knocked out Volkanovski in the first round at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi and defended the UFC lightweight championship belt. After the fight, Makhachev stated that he would not celebrate the victory due to the situation in the world and that he supported Palestine. On Tuesday, the 31-year-old Russian fighter did not fly to his native Makhachkala.
– You did not celebrate the victory, considering the world situation. Did you know in advance that this is how you would behave? Did these words come from the heart?
“I have all this accumulated.” For a week, you’ve opened your phone, and it’s the same thing everywhere. How children die there, explosions, people sitting down… And in general, I was also not in the mood, to be honest, before the battle. I have not planned anything. It was just such emotions.
— Is the lack of journalists now also linked to this? Did you want to come quietly?
– I didn’t come alone. 3-4 fighters also flew with me. I didn’t plan anything in advance. The first time too. The people themselves will find out. Now I haven’t told anyone about it.
– The feeling is that you arrived differently. Calmer…
– We already need something new. Maybe when I arrive with the second belt, there will be other emotions, something new,” Makhachev told .
The escalation of the long-running Palestinian-Israeli conflict began on the morning of October 7. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared in a speech to the nation that the country was in a state of war. The number of victims in the Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip exceeded five thousand people, more than 15 thousand people were injured. More than 1.3 thousand people have died in Israel.
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Source : MatchTV
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.
