“I got short end of the deal” – Beneil Dariush reveals what happened with Alexander Volkanovski taking his spot as backup fighter for UFC 280 title fight

“I got short end of the deal” – Beneil Dariush reveals what happened with Alexander Volkanovski taking his spot as backup fighter for UFC 280 title fight

Alexander Volkanovski and Beneil Dariush

Beneil Dariush was fully sure that he was going to be the backup fighter for the upcoming UFC lightweight title fight at UFC 280. Well, this was until the pound-for-pound number one fighter, Alexander Volkanovski, himself offered to be a backup.

It came off as a surprise to everyone when the best fighter on the planet agreed to fly all the way to Abu Dhabi from the land down under, make weight, and be a mere backup fighter for the upcoming Charles Oliveira vs Islam Makhachev UFC 280 fight. However, Volkanovski was not alone in this deal.

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Beneil Dariush, the #6 ranked lightweight, who also fights at UFC 280 was initially the backup fighter for the title fight. Dariush thought the featherweight champion was playing games when the news first broke out. In a recent exclusive interview with FirstSportz MMA, the lightweight himself reacts to this turn of events.

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“Well, you know you got the best pound-for-pound fighter, pound-for-pound number one guy offering himself to be the alternate, so I’m assuming the UFC went, ‘Well, that sounds pretty good to us, we’ll take it,'” said Dariush talking to FirstSportz.

“I’m guessing that’s what happened and I got the short end of the deal,” added Dariush as he seems to brush off the entire drama and is focusing on his upcoming fight against Mateusz Gamrot. Dariush and Gamrot will face each other in a three-round fight on the main card this weekend.

Read more: OFFICIAL: Alexander Volkanovski, The Featherweight Champion, will be the backup fighter for the lightweight title fight at UFC 280

Beneil Dariush was not convinced Alexander Volknaovski took his spot as the backup for the main event

Beneil Dariush
Beneil Dariush

The official announcement of Alexander Volkanovski being the backup for Charles Oliveira vs Islam Makhachev came out of nowhere and Dariush could not believe it. The fighter was convinced he was going to be the fill-in right until Volkanovski claimed to be the backup.

With a Twitter announcement, the pound-for-pound champ announced that he will be the backup fighter for the lightweight title fight. Dariush reacted to this announcement in an interview with Sirius XM. “Honestly, I’m confused. I don’t know if he’s playing games or the UFC is playing games because I was told I’m the fill-in,” said Dariush.

Also read: “It’s about time,” Marvin Vettori vouches for Beneil Dariush, calls him the best lightweight fighter

Dariush will now have to wait for another opportunity at the title and look to get a win against the talented Gamrot this weekend. The #6 lightweight is on a seven-fight winning streak heading into the much-anticipated bout.

Watch the LIVE coverage of 280 – Oliveira vs Makhachev on SONY TEN 2 (English), SONY TEN 3 (Hindi) & SONY TEN 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels at 11:30 pm IST on 22nd October 2022.

Also read: “In the best shape of my life” – TJ Dillashaw shows off INCREDIBLE physique despite steroid accusations ahead of UFC 280