As great as it was to watch Ilia Topuria’s rise to the featherweight championship, it was equally painful watching him put Alexander Volkanovski’s lights out in the manner that he did. The MMA community is rife with rumors of the two facing off again, and ‘El Matador’ even promised ‘The Great’ that he would grant him the rematch after knocking out Max Holloway at UFC 308. It seems like the Georgian-Spaniard has an affable stance towards the Australian former featherweight king, and showed him nothing but respect after taking the belt from him. But business is business, and if he has to put Volk away again, he will.

On speaking about his rumored rematch with Alexander Volkanovski, Ilia Topuria has a game plan against ‘The Great’, and it doesn’t involve knocking him out. Here’s what ‘El Matador’ said, according to MMA Junkie, “I like Volk, and I know what’s going to happen if we face each other again. …Maybe the next time, instead of knocking him out, I will submit him. Maybe I’m going to change that to a different type of clip.”

Quite cold coming from the featherweight champion, but what else is he supposed to do? Lie down and show his belly like a puppy? No. This is fighting, and when it comes to settling business inside the Octagon, Topuria is all about cashing in checks.

Speaking on the supposed rematch, Jorge Climent, Topuria’s head coach welcomed the opportunity of facing Volkanovski again, “Volkanovski is one of those fighters we’ll never turn down… I don’t think anyone in this room is saying, ‘Oh, this is crazy’ or ‘ridiculous.’ Who wouldn’t want to see it again?” UFC CEO Dana White hinted at the UFC 308 post-fight press conference last year that there might be a possibility of a fight between Volkanovski and Ilia Topuria. So what do the fans think about this? Let’s take a look.

UFC buffs spark a debate after Ilia Topuria’s rematch challenge

While he definitely wants to challenge Islam Makhachev for the lightweight belt, Topuria has kept his options open with a challenge to ‘The Great’. Invoking solidarity with the Australian fighter, fans chimed in with comments like, “I know Volk deserves the rematch but man I don’t want this rematch,” and, “What if Volk wins tho.”

And what does Volkanovski have to say about all this? Speaking to Main Event, he said, “I don’t want to get in the way of someone’s [title dream]. I want that [Topuria] fight. It’s gonna suck, because I’d love that. If the UFC want [Makhachev vs. Topuria], and [Topuria] is pushing for it and they can make that happen, then alright.”

A netizen commented, “If the fight ends up happening and he subs Volk, it will be legendary,” while another fan touted Topuria as a legend slayer, “This guy is knocking out our favorite fighters one at a time.” It was quite painful watching Alexander Volkanovski fall to Ilia Topuria, no doubt. It’s just one of those bouts where while you celebrate one fighter, you really feel for the other. In that light, one fan said, “Pro is looking for new ways to traumatize the MMA world.”

Fans are obviously divided on the outcome of this supposed rematch. One fan of ‘The Great’ wrote, “Volk wins this rematch,” while another, clearly a fan of ‘El Matador’ commented, “Anyone doubting Ilia at this point?” What do you think will be the outcome of this fight? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.