UFC 333 Results: Volkanovski vs. Evloev - MMA Fighting

Alexander Volkanovski stopped Movsar Evloev to defend his belt in a fight that was close on paper, but not in how it played out inside the Octagon. Adam Martin breaks down the action from an exciting UFC 333 card.

Alexander Volkanovski is still the greatest after his latest title defense as he ended Movsar Evloev’s undefeated run with a second-round stoppage in the UFC 333 main event. As usual, Volkanovski showed off tremendous takedown defense and immaculate striking as he picked Evloev apart on the feet. Finally in the second round, Volkanovski put together a combination of punches that put Evloev down and the Australian finished with a barrage of shots on the ground. The end came at 4:54 in the second round. “He’s a great figher,” Volkanovski said after his latest title defefnse. “He was undefeated for a reason but I just said I’m the right guy for that job. I knew the ref would have to stop it when he covered up like that. “I’m choosing to do this. I said if I didn’t take too much damage, we probably keep going so maybe we keep going. I feel the love and it’s paid off now. The love around the world is incredible.”After tasting defeat for the first time, Evloev was understandably upset but he paid homage to Volkanovski on a job well done. “It was a terrible fight,” Evloev said. “He’s a good one. Older, stronger, better, he’s truly a legend. I’m grateful for this opportunity to be here.

Caliari (120.5: missed weight) vs. Iasmin Lucindo (115) UFC 333 “Volkanovski vs. Evloev” coverage will begin Saturday

Ryan Harkness breaks down daily mixed martial arts (MMA) news, providing unique context to stories that only 15 years of obsessing over the sport can provide, having worked for FOX Sports, Yahoo! Sports, UPROXX, MSN, Bleacher Report, HDNet and CagePotato, among others, before joining MMAmania.com in 2017. Alexander Volkanovski is very confident coming into his featherweight title fight against Movsar Evloev at UFC 333. Volkanovski has been stumping for this matchup against the extremely tough but not very dynamic Evloev who has 10 wins in the UFC, all by decision. Evloev never hesitates to spam takedowns and go for a control-based win, something that might have worked against other opponents … but not Volkanovski, according to Volkanovski. “He better bring his very best game,” the Australian champ told MMA Junkie’s Farah Hannoun. “However he thinks he can win, come and do it. No disrespect to him, but I believe that where he’s so strong and so good with everyone else, I believe that’s not where he can beat me. Trying to out-grapple me for 25 minutes? I can’t see it.”“I believe that the only chance that any of these guys have is for them to catch me,” he continued.

The UFC 333 card in Abu Dhabi was a great reminder that most people couldn't be a successful MMA fighter. Saturday's event proved that no matter what people think, there's levels to this game.

Alexander Volkanovski and Petr Yan expect UFC 333 to live up to the hype. The top two fights of Saturday’s event in Abu Dhabi are two of the most anticipated championship fights in recent memory, with featherweight champion Volkanovski taking on the undefeated Movsar Evloev in the main event, and bantamweight champion Petr Yan settling his rivalry with Merab Dvalishvili in a co-main trilogy bout. Watch their final faceoffs below from Friday’s ceremonial weigh-ins. Afterwards, all four fighters were given the chance to speak, starting with Dvalishvili, who said simply, “This is going to be an exciting fight. And new.”With both men at the front of the GOAT conversation at 135 pounds, Yan responded that on Saturday, “I show you who’s best of the best.”Evloev, 10-0 in the UFC, vowed that his long climb to the top of the division will end in a championship victory. “All the work has been done,” Evloev said. “Everything that needs to be said has been said. And now I need to do things I’ve been working on for so long.