UFC Saudi Arabia in jeopardy as Dana White’s announcement surprises Alexander Volkov and Sergei Pavlovich

Alexander Volkov and Sergei Pavlovich have trained together in the past.

UFC Saudi Arabia in jeopardy as Dana White’s announcement surprises Alexander Volkov and Sergei Pavlovich

UFC surprises Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov with a recent fight Alexander Volkov announcement(via Imago)

Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov aren’t happy about their recent fight scheduled by the UFC. According to the promotion’s latest announcement, Pavlovich and Volkov are going to fight each other in a heavyweight matchup at the UFC Saudi Arabia event.

However, it seems like a miscommunication has occurred between both the fighters and the promotion regarding the decision. Allegedly, the UFC didn’t ask any of the fighters for their respective permission ahead of the fight.

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In a recent report by RedFuryMMA, the strange announcement of the fight has left both camps in confusion. Neither Sergei Pavlovich nor Alexander Volkov‘s team agreed to participate in the fight but that didn’t stop the promotion from scheduling it. 

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UFC announced its first-ever event of 2024 in Saudi Arabia to be held on June 22. The Promotion has talked about this particular event for some time now and it seems like they finally made it possible. In the main event, Robert Whittaker will be taking on undefeated, Khamzat Chimaev in an exciting middleweight bout.

The significance of this event is massive and it will allow the promotion to tap into the incredible potential of the Saudi Arabian UFC fanbase. To do that, having a heavyweight matchup like Pavlovich vs. Volkov does make sense. However, given both the fighters are former training partners they might be hesitant in taking the fight.

Alexander Volkov’s thoughts on a fight against Russian Sergei Pavlovich

Alexander Volkov and Sergei Pavlovich are two of the biggest names in the UFC heavyweight division. According to fans, their clash is inevitable given that both the fighters are competitive and looking for the UFC gold.

When asked about the same in an interview at UFC 293, Volkov shared some interesting insights about the matter. According to the fighter, the fight will gather immense popularity in Russia.

Former training partners Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov
Former training partners Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov(via Telecom Asia)
If we will fight, it would be a really big fight for Russian fans, for sure. But, you know, I've trained with Sergei Pavlovich a really long time…The answer is, we will fight in the cage a fight for a title or, how do you say? Like, a contender title fight. Just in this case. It will have meanings for both of us to get to the title.
Alexander Volkov via UFC 293 press conference

Volkov and Pavlovich have trained a lot during their days in Moscow so it will be a tough situation to be. However, given the possibility of climbing up the heavy weight ranking, it won’t be an impossible choice to make for both fighters. 

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