Israel Adesanya On Alexander Volkanovski’s Title Shot: ‘Nothing Else Makes Sense’
UFC interim middleweight champion Israel Adesanya was bemused by his teammate Alexander Volkanovski getting skipped over for a title shot.
Volkanovski seemingly guaranteed his place as the next challenger for Max Holloway’s featherweight crown following a dominant 30-27 unanimous decision win over Jose Aldo this past weekend at UFC 237.
However, it was surprisingly reported Monday night that Frankie Edgar would be getting the next shot at the Hawaiian at UFC 240 in July.
In the buildup to UFC 237, Volkanovski had spoken of his desire to face Holloway on the same Sydney card as the proposed middleweight title unification fight between Robert Whittaker and Adesanya.
And “The Last Stylebender” believes that is what the UFC should have gone with rather than giving the shot to Edgar.
The UFC Owe Frankie Edgar
It is extremely harsh for Volkanovski to be skipped over. After all, “The Great” is unbeaten in the UFC and is coming off wins over Chad Mendes and Aldo.
However, Edgar was slated to face Holloway for the title twice with the fight being pulled on both occasions due to injury.
They were most recently expected to collide at UFC 222 last year. But with Holloway pulling out, Edgar risked his title shot against short-notice opponent Brian Ortega and lost.
Considering how “The Answer” saved the show by facing Ortega, it seems the UFC has certainly not forgotten. The bright side for Volkanovski is that he could still get a title shot this year as Holloway plans on being active.
Latest Development
In hindsight, giving Edgar the fight may have been the best thing. In the early hours of Tuesday morning, ESPN’s Ariel Helwani reported that Volkanovski was hospitalized in Chile and was dealing with a type of blood infection.
However, it is unlikely to have played a role in the UFC’s matchmaking process, especially as Volkanovski seemed fine during a Monday interview on Helwani’s MMA Show.
