Alexander Volkanovski says he's had plenty of time to prepare for UFC 298: "I’m not doing this just to get my head right. I want to be busy and I know it's enough time"

“A lot of hype around him, undefeated, I think this is just the perfect bounce-back fight for me, as well. A lot of people are saying he’s dangerous, which look, he is dangerous. He’s a powerful dude. He’s undefeated. That’s a story in itself. You’ve got the story of what happened in my last fight. People are like, ‘Oh, is he coming back too soon?’ All this is a part of the story. When I look at it, I’m like, ‘Mate, I’ve been in camp for that long. I’m hearing people saying, Oh, he’s back too soon.’ I just can’t see it.

“I’ve been busting my ass for that long. I’m like, ‘What do you mean?’ Like, I’ve had that much time. This has been a very long camp for me. Obviously I followed all the protocols after it from concussion and that like, I’m lucky enough to have a great team around me. But we followed that to a T, and that’s why the fight was pushed back a month because we just thought January was rushing. We wanted that extra month where I could ease into it and then start camp. That’s what we did.”

I like what we're hearing from Volk here. If he loses I don't think it's because he rushed back - he's facing a talented younger fighter and Volk at an age where we would expect to see some decline. I could see Volk getting caught but I could just as easily see him putting on a masterclass and schooling Topuria. That's what makes this fight so hotly anticipated. War-Volk.