Alexander Volkanovski has specific criteria in mind for his next fight — he wants to return at UFC 312 in Australia and he wants gold on the line.

The former featherweight king hasn’t competed since he suffered a devastating knockout loss to Ilia Topuria back in February, which cost him the 145-pound title. With the UFC now returning to Australia on Feb. 9, Volkanovski makes it clear that he plans to fight on that card come hell or high water.

“I’m going to do whatever it takes to make sure that I am on that card,” Volkanovski said during a local press conference announcing the event via Submission Radio. “I’ll be entertaining in Sydney in February, 100 percent.

“Whether it is for the title, an interim [title], lightweight title, I don’t care what it is. If for some reason I can’t get a fight, I’ll entertain on the DJ decks or something. I’ll find a way to do it.”

Ideally, Volkanovski would like to fight the winner of the UFC 308 main event where Topuria puts his featherweight title up for grabs against Max Holloway.

But the 36-year-old former champion acknowledges that there’s all sorts of potential obstacles that could prevent the winner from fighting in late October and then competing again three months later in early February.

He hopes either Topuria or Holloway stay healthy enough to fight again that soon but that’s also why Volkanovski has the idea about introducing an interim title in their absence.

“If there’s injuries or something, I think an interim could be that might fit,” Volkanovski said. “Max, if he was to win, he obviously has the ‘BMF’ belt as well so whether he moves up to lightweight, which would mean an interim. So we’ve had these conversations and I’m really going to push for that.

“I’m pretty sure they do both want quick turnarounds. You’ve got injuries that could get in the way, other divisions for Max. So that could mean maybe an interim title, which is fine. Anything with gold, I’ll be happy. That’ll just lock me in for whoever wins that anyways. So even if it’s interim, that’s still a big one.”

While nothing has been decided yet and probably won’t until after UFC 308 concludes, Volkanovski believes that top-ranked contender Diego Lopes is the most likely candidate for an opponent if Topuria or Holloway aren’t available.

Fresh off a win over Brian Ortega in September, Lopes is set to weigh-in as the backup fighter for the title bout in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 26. Volkanovski welcomes that challenge to ensure he gets to fight in Australia in February.

“I’d say it would be an exciting one with [Diego] Lopes if that was going to happen,” Volkanovski said. “If not, it’s Max or Ilia.”

As far as who he’s picking to win at UFC 308, Volkanovski has plenty of history with both men but right now he’s leaning towards a new champion being crowned in Holloway.

“I think he’s proven himself time and time again,” Volkanovski said about Holloway. “So it looks like I might have to do No. 4 with the guy so we’ll see what happens.

:I’d probably like to compete with Ilia, get that win back, to be quite honest but I was asked the question who do I think would win, I thought it probably would be Max. But whoever it is, they’ve got the belt so that’s exciting.”

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Tom Aspinall may have pro wrestling in his future after making an appearance at a WWE show in Manchester, England this week.

The interim UFC heavyweight champion was introduced by WWE universal champion Cody Rhodes, and made his way to the ring to a rousing ovation from his home crowd. Check out the video below.

Shortly thereafter, WWE world champ Gunther — who faces Rhodes at WWE’s Crown Jewel on Nov. 2 — made his way out to the ring.

Gunther put over Aspinall’s accomplishments before asking for an all-champions photo with the Aspinall and Rhodes. Gunther then went on to wish Rhodes good luck in their matchup for Saudi Arabia and offered up a handshake.

Aspinall then asked them, ‘“Why wait until Crown Jewel, when we can do this right here, right now in Manchester?” The crowd was into it, but cooler heads ultimately prevailed.

After winning the interim belt with a quick knockout of Sergei Pavlovich at UFC 295 this past November, Aspinall successfully defended the title in July with a first-round finish of Curtis Blaydes at UFC 304 in July. Aspinall will be the backup fighter for the upcoming UFC 309 heavyweight championship main event between Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic.

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The PFL will host back-to-back events in Saudi Arabia.

During Thursday’s PFL: Battle of the Giants press conference, PFL CEO Peter Murray announced that their annual World Championship card will take place in Riyadh on Nov. 29. Six fighters will walk away with season championships, along with the grand prize of $ 1 million.

It will be the first time the event will be held outside of the United States.

For the women’s flyweight season title, rising star Dakota Ditcheva will face one-time UFC title challenger Taila Santos. Ditcheva earned her spot with a quick knockout of Jena Bishop, while Santos cemented her place in the finals with a decision win over Bellator champ Liz Carmouche.

Brendan Loughnane also looks to cash another $ 1 million check as he faces Timur Khizriev for the featherweight crown.

Check out all of the title fights below.

Dakota Ditcheva vs. Taila Santos – women’s flyweight title fight

Brendan Loughnane vs. Timur Khizriev – featherweight title fight

Brent Primus vs. Gadzhi Rabadanov – lightweight title fight

Shamil Musaev vs. Magomed Umalatov – welterweight title fight

Impa Kasanganay vs. Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov – light heavyweight title fight

Denis Goltsov vs. Oleg Popov – heavyweight title fight

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The full card headlined by Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson at AT&T Stadium just outside Dallas on Nov. 15 has been revealed.

Paul faces Tyson in an eight round heavyweight main event with the card airing live on Netflix for no additional cost to subscribers.

In addition to Paul vs. Tyson, a highly anticipated rematch between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano serves as the 10-round co-main event. Taylor puts all of her super lightweight titles on the line for the rematch after winning a razor-close decision over Serrano in their first encounter.

A WBC welterweight title fight also takes place on the card as reigning champion Mario Barrios takes on Abel Ramos in a 12-round bout. The final fight rounding out the main card pits Neeraj Goyat against Whindersson Nunes in a six-round super middleweight fight.

As for the prelims, Shadasia Green, who counts Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions as her promoter and managers, takes on undefeated contender Melinda Watpool.

Lucas Bahdi clashes with Corey Marskman in a 10-round lightweight fight between two undefeated prospects. Bruce Carrington Jr. rounds out the preliminary card when he faces Dana Coolwell.

The card airs globally on Netflix with the event kicking off at 8 p.m. ET on Friday, Nov. 15.

Here’s the full card for Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson

MAIN CARD

MAIN EVENT: Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson

Amanda Serrano vs. Katie Taylor

Mario Barrios vs. Abel Ramos

Neeraj Goyat vs. Whindersson Nunes

PRELIMS

Shadasia Green vs. Melinda Watpool

Lucas Bahdi vs. Corey Marksman

Bruce Carrington Jr. vs. Dana Coolwell

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Raul Rosas Jr. knows he’s ready for ranked competition but he’s also trusting in the UFC to do right by him.

Following a win over Aoriqileng at UFC 306, the 19-year-old prospect immediately called for a top 15 opponent but that’s not a demand. Instead, Rosas just wants the chance to propel his career forward with hopes that he’ll eventually find himself in title contention.

“If I would have went out there and got the finish, I would for sure have a good argument to get a top 15 [opponent],” Rosas told MMA Fighting. “I want a top 15 [opponent] but if my next fight is not against a top 15 fighter, I want somebody that the UFC would be like ‘if you beat this guy, we’ll give you a ranked opponent next.’ But either way, I want to be that close.

“I just want fights that will get me closer to the belt. I don’t want to fight somebody that I’ll just beat and I stay in the same spot. I want to beat somebody that will get me way closer to the belt.”

Rosas has long stated that he wants to become UFC champion but he also acknowledges that he’s got plenty of time to get there.

While beating a ranked opponent would certainly speed along that process, Rosas realizes that there are plenty of UFC veterans without a number next to their name that still count as a quality win.

Facing a veteran like Aoriqileng with nearly 40 fights on his record gave Rosas some valuable experience but now he just wants the chance to step up to the next rung on the ladder when it comes to the hierarchy in the UFC’s bantamweight division.

“That’s the ultimate goal,” Rosas said about becoming UFC champion. “Regardless, I’m still getting more experienced. Every fight I’m getting better and better.

“Like this fight, I took it as a way to get more experience because it was a step up in competition. He was the best fighter that I fought so far. He was like a veteran, he was able to stay relaxed and he’s got power in his hands, good takedown defense so it was a step up in competition but the right step up. If I get another fight like that, the right step up then I’ll take it.”

When it comes to timing, Rosas admits that he would love to get one more fight before the end of the year but he’s not ready to commit to a date just yet with some lingering injuries that need to heal.

“I’m not 100 percent healthy,” Rosas said. “I have a few injuries from the fight, I injured my knee a little bit. It’s getting better. But I had injuries before the fight and they’re still messed up. I’m going to try to heal those up and once I get healed up, I’ll book a fight.

“I do want to fight in December but if I book it right now, I don’t want to risk to have to pull out because I haven’t recovered. So I want to make sure I recover 100 percent and then I’ll book a fight.”

If December doesn’t happen, Rosas revealed that he probably won’t fight again until at least April 2025 because he wants to enjoy some time with his family around the holidays. Like most teenagers his age, Rosas would really love a Christmas break, especially after missing out this past year.

“I’ll be honest, I don’t want to fight January, February or March,” Rosas said. “If I do get one in, I want it to be this year or a little bit after March. Because I want to be able to enjoy Christmas.

“Last year, I didn’t get to enjoy it because I had a fight in February so I had to train all December and January. Even though the fight didn’t happen because I got sick the day of the fight but I had been training since December. I’m not going to lie, it kind of sucked so this year I want to enjoy Christmas.”

Rosas expects to know within a couple weeks whether or not he’ll be healthy enough to fight again in 2024, especially with a potential grappling match on the horizon in October.

“I’m already training,” Rosas said. “I’m already in camp because I think I have a big grappling match coming up, a big name, but obviously I can’t really say [yet], nothing’s signed, nothing’s confirmed yet but I got the offer and I said yes. We’ll see if that goes through and that will happen Oct. 26.”

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Francis Ngannou’s MMA return happens this Saturday as the PFL returns to pay-per-view for Battle of the Giants in Saudi Arabia. With the PFL needing to badly get some buzz, does Ngannou have to beat Renan Ferreira — not just for himself, but for the PFL as a whole?

On an all-new edition of Between the Links, the panel discusses Saturday’s big fight card, how important it is that the card delivers as a whole, and what happens based on the result of the main event. Additionally, topics include Dana White once again ripping the UFC rankings panel after UFC 307, the promotion returning to the APEX this Saturday for UFC Vegas 99 headlined by Anthony Hernandez vs. Michel Pereira, Donald Cerrone announcing he’s ending his retirement with hopes of two more UFC bouts, UFC 310 fight announcements including Belal Muhammad vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov for the welterweight title, and more.

Host Mike Heck moderates the matchup between MMA Fighting’s Jed Meshew and UFC lightweight Grant Dawson.

Watch the show live at 12:30 p.m. ET / 9:30 a.m. PT in the video above.

If you missed the show live, you can still watch above, or listen to the podcast version, which can be found below and on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your pods.

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PFL co-founder Donn Davis continues to lay down the gauntlet to Dana White and the UFC.

Davis spoke to the media ahead of Saturday’s PFL: Battle of the Giants pay-per-view in Saudi Arabia, headlined by Francis Ngannou vs. Renan Ferreira. The outspoken Davis went on to explain why White is afraid of booking a PFL vs. UFC cross-promotional event.

“Yes, the UFC’s brand name is bigger, we recognize that, we’re the new guy,” Davis said. “We have to work harder. We’re in year five, they’re in year 30. But if push came to shove, and it was five fights — we pick five, they pick five — let me tell you, they wouldn’t do that. Because we’d win half, and they’d win half. … That’s why Dana, hashtag Dana scared, would never do that. He knows that and we know that.

“But be fans of all of us. We love all fighting, we root for all fighters. Watch them both.”

Davis has not been afraid to speak his mind when it comes to White, the UFC, and the strength of the PFL roster. In fact, Davis believes that the winner of Ngannou’s return to the MMA cage for the first time since making the choice to vacate the UFC heavyweight title and sign with PFL — no matter who wins — is the best in the world at the weight class.

Another gauntlet was laid down by Davis for current UFC heavyweight champ Jon Jones to face Ngannou, or the winner of this fight.

“This is the fight everyone wants to see,” Davis explained. “Whoever comes out of this fight is the No. 1 [heavyweight] in the world. So whoever wants to claim the No. 1 spot goes through the winner of this fight — not through the UFC, this fight. So whoever wants to claim that position better be calling us after Saturday, not calling them.

“We’ve said at PFL, we want to give fans what they want. … Francis Ngannou has said he’ll take on all comers. I think Jon Jones wants to cement his legacy. There’s only one obstacle to that fight, and we know who that is.”

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Former champion Gegard Mousasi filed a lawsuit in New Jersey against Bellator, and the promotion’s new owners at PFL, over numerous complaints including breach of contract.

The lawsuit was filed on Wednesday with several PFL executives named in the lawsuit including company co-founder Donn Davis, PFL CEO Peter Murray and matchmaker Mike Kogan.

The claims from Mousasi against Bellator include “breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, unjust enrichment, a claim for relief for Monopsonization.”

In the 81-page filing, Mousasi’s attorneys detail the contract that the veteran middleweight signed with Bellator in 2017 and then agreed to an extension in 2020 that was later amended in 2023.

Under the terms of the deal, Mousasi would be paid a “guaranteed purse of $ 150,000 for his first four bouts, and then after his first four bouts were completed, Gegard would receive guaranteed purse for each subsequent bout of $ 200,000.”

Mousasi would also receive a “finish bonus of $ 50,000 for any bouts won by knockout or submission, plus a promotional fee for each such bout of $ 600,000. Accordingly, after his fourth bout was completed, Gegard was guaranteed to earn $ 800,000 per bout, and up to $ 850,000.”

The lawsuit details Mousasi’s complaints over his lack of activity after completing the first four fights under his contract and then accepting a fight against Fabian Edwards “despite carrying an injury that effectively forced him to fight Edwards with one arm” because he was worried that the promotion was going to sideline him indefinitely.

Mousasi claims that his situation only got worse after Bellator sold to PFL in November 2023 and a lack of communication with promotion officials continued to keep him out of action. The former UFC fighter expressed his frustration when speaking to MMA Fighting back in April.

“The problem is we cannot get ahold of them,” Mousasi said at the time. “They refuse to answer us back. I’ve been training, I’ve been ready. But like I said, they don’t promote me, or people think I’m retired actually. People don’t even know. After my fight, Fabian Edwards fought twice, and since then, they don’t even talk to us. I know I have a contract with them. I know they are obligated to give me those fights. I’m just waiting and I don’t know. Just waiting, what can I do?

“I talked to Mike Kogan, he suggested, ‘Well, you make too much money.’ He said, ‘I would get back to you after I talk to them because they cannot let you hang like this.’ I haven’t heard from him either.”

The lawsuit lays out months of back and forth between Mousasi’s manager and PFL executives as attempts were made to resolve the situation, although the now 39-year-old fighter remained out of action.

Then in May, PFL and Bellator announced that Mousasi had been released from his contract after threatening legal action.

Now Mousasi has followed through with the lawsuit alleging breach of contract and claims that Bellator/PFL “engaged in anti-competitive monopsony conduct” while claiming he was misclassified as an independent contractor rather than an employee.

Mousasi is seeking “compensatory, consequential and/or equitable monetary damages in an amount to be determined at trial, but not less than $ 15 million” as well as punitive damages and attorney fees.

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Cody Garbrandt has a big decision to make.

The former UFC bantamweight champion is set to complete his current contract with the promotion on Nov. 9, when he fights Miles Johns at a UFC APEX show in Las Vegas on Nov. 9. When fight night rolls around, that’s 16 octagon appearances for Garbrandt, once one of the UFC’s most popular fighters.

Garbrandt discussed his contract status on a recent episode of the JAXXON podcast.

“Still going through some things with the UFC,” Garbrandt said. “It’s my last fight on the contract, so we’ll get together with them and see what we can come up with.”

After beginning his pro MMA career with five straight wins, Garbrandt went 5-0 in the UFC with four knockout wins to earn a shot at bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz at UFC 207 in December 2016. Garbrandt put on a virtuoso performance to claim the title at 25 years old, but then lost back-to-back fights by knockout to rival T.J. Dillashaw.

Since winning the title, Garbrandt has won just three of his past nine fights and appears to be well past his prime. He would still garner plenty of attention in free agency given his past accolades and he’ll likely consider other offers even if his preference is to stay put.

“I’d love to [re-sign],” Garbrandt said. “I love the UFC, especially the way the sport’s going. I love mixed martial arts. Obviously, UFC is the premier league to fight in there, but you know, money talks.”

Should the Johns fight go poorly, there’s also the chance that Garbrandt decides to call it a day, though he hasn’t discussed retirement as a possibility. When asked what he plans to do when he’s done competing, Garbrandt mentioned he’d like to stay involved in combat sports, though he’ll pass on the responsibility of coaching.

“I haven’t put too much thought into it—well, a little bit of thought into it,” Garbrandt said. “I try to not stay focused on one thing, but I’ve been in the sport for so long. Wrestling my whole life, boxed, did MMA, it would be in that realm. Maybe a gym.

“I don’t know if I could be a coach and deal with a lot of the fighters because a lot of the fighters are pretty crazy. Maybe I have a gym, maybe get in some management.”

TOP STORIES

Tragic. Thoughts and prayers go out to the loved ones of UFC and Bellator veteran Guilherme “Bomba” Vasconcelos, dead at 38.

Doubt. Matt Brown weighs in on Francis Ngannou’s star power and what that means for this Saturday’s milestone PFL event.

More beef? Ilia Topuria has yet another rivalry cooking as he is now trading shots with Conor McGregor.

Rankings. Dana White vows to fix the UFC rankings.

Deplorable. Mike Perry used some disgusting language during his recent arrest.

Duck? Ian Machado Garry claims Colby Covington hasn’t accepted a fight offer.

G’day Mate. The UFC returns to Sydney in February.

VIDEO STEW

PFL stars tackle media day.

Francis returns.

The baddest of BMFs.

FLAVOR IN YOUR EAR

No Bets Barred. Jed Meshew brings you your best bets for PFL: Battle of the Giants and UFC Vegas 99.

Geeking Out. Matt Serra and guest Frankie Edgar go deep on the film oeuvre of the great Jean-Claude Van Damme.

SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE

Tribute.

Ah yes, perhaps “Poatan” can finally get some of that elusive KO power.

Amanda Ribas catching a body.

Atomweights been here.

Happy birthday!

Not the worst idea.

Fight Circus.

FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS

Talisson Teixeira (7-0) vs. Lukasz Brzeski (9-5-1, 1 NC); UFC 310, Dec. 7

Nikolas Motta (14-5, 1 NC) vs. Maheshate (10-3); UFC Macau, Nov. 23

Jake Hadley (11-3) vs. Cameron Smotherman (11-4); UFC Vegas 99, Oct. 19

FINAL THOUGHTS

It’s been almost eight years since Cody Garbrandt won the UFC bantamweight title and, somehow, it feels longer than that? It’s safe to say we’ve never quite seen a career decline as steep as Garbrandt’s and it’s unclear how much he has left in the tank. Perhaps he can be reborn in bare-knuckle boxing? Just spitballing.

EXIT POLL

If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @AlexanderKlee or @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let us know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and like us on Facebook.

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RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – With the PFL:Battle of the Giants only days away, the top stars on the main card squared off Wednesday evening.

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