I won't say he's done but can understand that sentiment. Will be hard to come back not only from back to back KOs but also to lose to an opponent that kinda alpha'd you successfully, might take a mental toll. I look forward to his return and will be interesting to see what he has left but ya future definitely looks uncertain.
Yep. He ****ed his career up. I think he would have a good year or two left on top if he didn't take the Makhachev rematch. Came back too soon for this one as well. a sad end to a great career.
Yep. The great Manny Steward himself said getting KO'd back to back in quick succession is what destroys chins. Being 35 certainly isn't going to help matters either.
He had a great 4 year run but his days on top is done. Watching it live I thought of RJJ where he is know susceptible to getting knocked out cold when a head shot lands. When fighters take these shots and they go to sleep its time to call it.
And he got legit KO´d on both occasions. Lights out, no one is home. He is going to have to take a year off to let the brain heal up. But I am fairly certain he will be back to sparring in no time. Volk is old, but he is also skilled and talented. He could make a solid comeback even at 36.
Yeah he’s done. Should’ve stayed in his own division or at least taken time off after the Makhachev KO.
Father time is undefeated. Once fighters go above35 yrs or so it makes it so hard to keep winning when you constantly are fighting elite level fighters. People naively put Khabib on a pedestal as some goat (he's far from it) because he was some mystical undefeated fighter but the reality is that he only had about 3 or 4 elite wins in his whole career and REFUSED to move up a weight for a challenge when he had to kill himself to make 155. If Khabib had have kept fighting or went up to 170 he would also have numerous defeats like Volk. Khabib is in no way better than Volk all time imo. Everyone loses especially if you continue fighting over a certain age and test yourself in other weight classes where you are undersized against big strong young elite fighters.
Had he waited, taken a full camp vs Islam, and not annihilate his chin with a head kick on 10 days notice. He would have had a way better chance against Illia
It's funny how in combat sports these small decisions can have a massive impact on your career trajectory. We all admire watching smaller fighters take big risks against larger foes, rising to the occasion and proving their greatness. But there's a fine line between courage and downright recklessness. Taking a fight on short notice is always a risk when you're fighting a world class fighter. But to take a short notice against a dominant champion at a weight class above your natural weight? Foolish...
Volk can comeback but his peak days are over and I think he should retire from MMA and start his MMA gym.
