Amidst rumours of a January return to the cage, featherweight king Alex Volkanovski has being asked to step in on 10-days’ notice to rematch Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title at UFC 294 next Sunday.
Makhachev’s original opponent Charles Oliveira has been forced to pull out after suffering an injury during a final day of sparring, leaving the UFC to scramble to find an opponent for Makhachev. Volkanovski was contacted, and agreed to the bout, as reported by BJPenn.com.
The UFC confirmed the bout via their social media.
The two originally faced off at UFC 284 in Perth, with Makhachev coming away with the decision victory.
Since that fight, Volkanovski has been vocal about his intention of rematching the Russian fighter in Abu Dhabi.
Volkanovski has been recovering from arm surgery after defending his featherweight title against Yair Rodriguez at UFC 290.
Makhachev has not fought since UFC 284.
