ABU DHABI – Alexander Volkanovski couldn’t help himself, but the internal drive that led him to defeat Saturday at UFC 294 is also the same attribute that found him many a success.
Following his first-round knockout loss to Islam Makhachev, Volkanovski (26-3 MMA, 13-2 UFC) attempted to control his emotions as he explained why he accepted the lightweight title challenge on 11 days’ notice.
“I don’t want to sit there and obviously make excuses,” Volkanovski told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “You know what I mean? Obviously, I’m a big believer in preparation and stuff like that. But I back myself, so that’s the decision I made. You know what I mean? I’ve probably made decisions… I could’ve made better decisions, but he’s not somebody you should be taking a short notice with. But I needed it.
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