Alexander Volkov Loves The Learning Process

One of those losses turned into a lesson came against Ciryl Gane, who he gets another crack at when the two collide for a second time at UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura.

He and Gane headlined an APEX fight night in June 2021, and Gane outworked and outclassed Volkov for the unanimous decision nod. Since then, Gane went on to capture the interim heavyweight title but split his next four fights afterward, while Volkov regained traction after the defeat.

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When asked to evaluate Gane’s run in the Octagon since their first meeting, Volkov praised Gane’s skills and success, but also said he believes “Bon Gamin” is relatively the same fighter he was more than three years ago. Volkov mainly attributes that to experience. Whereas Volkov has 48 professional fights and, therefore, the chance to get the reps to evolve as a fighter, Gane only has 14. Nonetheless, it’s Volkov who is hoping to get revenge on December 7, and he hopes to put what he learned from that experience to work in T-Mobile Arena. 

“I learned to be confident in myself,” Volkvo said. “It’s one of the biggest problems for many fighters, and at the time, you feel a little bit kind of bored in the fight. It’s hard to push yourself, to motivate yourself. I got some motivation after this loss and the fight with Tom Aspinall. It made me more risky, more dangerous and more well-rounded because I started to work on skills I didn’t work before.”

While years of fights provided opportunities for Volkov to improve, his admission of complacency seems to have flipped the switch. The new Volkov is more aggressive, more well-rounded, and, honestly, much more personable during fight week. While Volkov has come off as quieter in interviews and in public previously, he seems to be embracing all that comes with the fight game in recent years.

His personality was on display in the lead-up to his fight with Sergei Pavlovich at UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs Aliskerov in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia earlier this summer. Volkov played to the crowd during open workouts as much as any of the athletes who appeared, and he turned some heads when his “style coach” combed his hair between rounds with one of the most feared knockout artists in the division. 

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Laughs aside, Volkov said his openness is an intentional development. While he enjoys and appreciates the fans he made across the world, he wants all fans to feel a connection with him, and to do that, he knows he has to show more of his personality to the public. 

It’s all for naught, however, if he doesn’t get his hand raised. Volkov isn’t married to the idea of the fight playing out a certain way, nor is he getting ahead of himself as far as what may come should he exact his revenge on Gane. He jokingly said it is a “dark time” for the heavyweights in the title picture with Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall yet to unify the heavyweight title. But, that’s for another time. For now, Volkov is excited at the prospect at getting back one of his losses and racking up a fifth win in a row.

“I just have to be myself,” Volkov said. “I have to show all skills I show in the gym. I will be myself. I will be technical, strong, good cardio, everything I have. I will have my best performance.”