Photo by Gabriel F Rodrigues on Unsplash

Volkanovski Stops Unbeaten Evloev to Keep UFC Title

sportOct 26, 2026·335 words·3 min read

Australian fighter Alexander Volkanovski kept his UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) featherweight title on Saturday, 24 October, defeating Russian challenger Movsar Evloev in the main event of UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi. Evloev, 32, arrived with an unbeaten professional record, but the 38-year-old champion became the first man to beat him. Late in the second round, Volkanovski staggered his opponent with an overhand right, took a dominant position on top and unleashed a barrage of punches.

This was Volkanovski's ninth win in a UFC featherweight title fight. The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) said this was a new record. But the New York Post said he only equalled the old record of José Aldo. Volkanovski lost his title in February 2024, but he later won it back. For Evloev, this was his first UFC title fight. He had won all ten of his earlier UFC fights.

After the fight, both men were respectful. Volkanovski praised Evloev and said he might keep fighting. Evloev said the champion was "like good wine - older, stronger, better". He called the defeat a good lesson. On the same night, Petr Yan also kept his title in a different weight group.

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