🚨 Alexander Volkanovski is ready to VACATE his UFC featherweight belt for a shot at the lightweight title against Arman Tsarukyan! Volk says a fight with Tsarukyan is starting to sound even more exciting than the potential Gaethje superfight. 🗣️ “If Justin doesn't want to do it, I'll do it! I'm starting to get more excited about that fight than the Gaethje fight.”
UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski says he would give up his 145-pound title to pursue a lightweight championship fight with Arman Tsarukyan, and he admits the idea is starting to excite him more than a potential superfight with Justin Gaethje.
Volkanovski's comments, which he made on social media, were framed as a fallback. If Gaethje doesn't want to take the fight, Volkanovski said, he'll do the Tsarukyan matchup instead. He added that he is getting more excited about that bout than the Gaethje one.
The timing is notable. Volkanovski, 29-4 and ranked third in the pound-for-pound standings, stopped Movsar Evloev in the second round at UFC 333 on October 24, his most recent recorded fight. That defence followed back-to-back unanimous decision wins over Diego Lopes in April 2025 and January 2026, both going the full five rounds. At 38, the Australian is still operating at the top of the division.
Tsarukyan, 24-3 and ranked second at lightweight, is 30 years old and fights out of American Top Team. His most recent recorded fight was a first-round KO/TKO of Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 331 on September 19. Before that came a second-round submission of Dan Hooker in November 2025 and a split decision over Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 in April 2024.
Why it matters
- Size and style: Volkanovski stands five-foot-six with a 71-inch reach, while Tsarukyan is five-foot-seven with a 72-inch reach, so the gap is just one inch in height and one inch in reach.
- Striking against grappling: Volkanovski lands 5.99 significant strikes per minute at 57 percent accuracy, compared with Tsarukyan's 3.78 per minute at 49 percent.
- Wrestling: Tsarukyan averages 3.25 takedowns per 15 minutes, nearly double Volkanovski's 1.63.
- Divisional impact: A vacated featherweight belt would reshape the 145-pound title picture, though no fight has been made.
Volkanovski has not said when he would move up, and nothing has been announced for either fighter.
