Tomorrow night in the main event of UFC 314, the vacant featherweight title is on the line. Former longtime champion Alexander Volkanovski (26-4) will look to regain the title as he takes on rising superstar Diego Lopes (26-6).
The featherweight division is without a champion after Ilia Topuria vacated the title following his knockout wins over Volkanovski and Max Holloway. Now, the division will crown a new king and this is the matchup that had to happen.
Volkanovski reigned over the featherweight division from 2019 until last February. He dethroned Max Holloway and then defended the title five times before falling victim to Ilia Topuria. Volkanovski enters the octagon just 1-3 in his last four fights with all three losses coming in title fights to Topuria and twice at lightweight against Islam Makhachev.
Diego Lopes was given his shot in the UFC on just a few days notice when he took on Movsar Evloev. Lopes nearly defeated Evloev and that earned him a contract. Since getting that contract, nobody has been able to stop him. He’s gone 5-0 with three first round finishes and decision wins over Dan Ige and Brian Ortega.
UFC 314 Prediction
This is a really tough fight for me because I really am a huge fan of both these guys. Two true fan-favorites and it honestly sucks that one of them has to lose tomorrow night. If you asked me about this fight about a year and a half ago, I wouldn’t hesitate at all in picking Volkanovski to win the UFC featherweight title.
That’s not to discredit Lopes, but that tells you how strongly I felt about Volk. However, I’m not sure we are looking at the same Alexander Volkanovski. The chin is really concerning to me ahead of tomorrow’s fight. After being able to stand in trade with the best of the best, Volkanovski has been knocked out twice in a row. Granted, it was to a head kick from the lightweight champion and a perfect right hand from the former featherweight champion.
That said, Diego Lopes is long, fast, and extremely powerful on the feet. If Volkanovski can take Lopes’ best shots, I think he should be the favorite to regain the UFC featherweight title. Volkanovski has the championship experience, he has the cardio, and he just knows how to win in these moments. We’ve never seen Lopes in a five-round war.
We’ve also seen Lopes have cardio issues in fights. If Lopes cannot get a finish in the first couple of rounds, I have a hard time seeing him winning a decision over Volkanovski. I just think the former champion knows how to put together a five-round plan that will allow him to win three rounds. It very well might be Diego Lopes’ time, but I’m not ready to write off the former champion just yet.
Prediction: Alexander Volkanovski by Decision