Alexander Volkanovski is once again UFC featherweight champion.
“The Great” outlasted a game Diego Lopes across five rounds of pay-per-view (PPV) action atop the UFC 314 fight card last Sat. night (April 12, 2025) at Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. The 145-pound title was left vacant when Ilia Topuria surrendered the strap to try his luck at lightweight.
Which as of this writing, is not off to the best start.
In addition to recapturing the division crown, Volkanovski also broke two longstanding curses in MMA, starting with the dreaded “Drake Curse.” The Canadian rap star is not the most reliable bettor when it comes to picking winners and revealed a significant wager (in favor of Volkanovski) prior to the event.
That’s not all.
Coming into UFC 314, fighters aged 35 and over were 0-17 all-time in UFC title fights at 155 pounds or lighter. Volkanovski turns 37 in September but managed to turn back the clock last weekend in “The Sunshine State,” adding Lopes to a resume that includes Max Holloway, Jose Aldo, and Yair Rodriguez, among others.
At this point, the UFC Hall of Fame feels like a lock.
“It’s good to be back,” Volkanovski (27-4) told Joe Rogan after the fight. “I’ve never felt the love so much. I was saying all week, I said I promised my girls I would bring the belt back to them. I think the message was a lot of people counted me out, coming off two knockout losses. Come back and beat a guy like Diego Lopes. It’s good to be back. Adversity is a privilege. This moment is incredible. This is sh*t people are going to write books about. There’s going to be movies. That type of shit. That’s what it’s all about.”
First order of business? Scan the featherweight Top 10 to find the next title contender.
For complete UFC 314 results, coverage, and highlights, click here.
