Two-division ONE Championship titleholder Anatoly Malykhin shared his prediction for the fight between Alexander Volkov and Jailton Almeida in an exclusive interview with Telecomasia.net.
Anatoly Malykhin exclusively for Telecom Asia Sport
In his recent fights, Alexander has greatly improved his takedown defense. He’s become very difficult to take down. The guy is making progress, that’s a good thing. Volkov brought in good wrestlers for his preparation, which means he’s further enhanced this skill. He simply won’t let himself be taken down, he’ll defeat Almeida in the stand-up, and finish the fight before the third round.
“How to stand up from under the Brazilian in case of a takedown? We’ve seen that Alexander knows how to finish fights while on his back. He can do everything. So Almeida will need to be very careful if he does manage to take Volkov down. But I think the Brazilian won’t be able to score even a single takedown. Almeida can’t match Volkov. Only Alexander can put up a fight against Tom Aspinall among the heavyweights, as far as I can tell,” Malykhin said.
On October 25, Alexander Volkov and Jailton Almeida will face off at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi (UAE). The Brazilian last fought in January 2025 at UFC 311, where he finished Sergey Spivak by technical knockout in the first round. Almeida’s record stands at 22 wins and three losses.
Aleksandr Volkov’s last fight was against Ciryl Gane in December 2024 at UFC 310, where the Russian fighter lost by split decision. Volkov has won 38 of his 49 professional MMA fights.
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