What are the chances of the Russian for the first time to win the title of UFC champion

Russian fighter Movsar Evloev will hold a title fight with UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski at the UFC 333 tournament in Abu Dhabi.

This match will be their first official confrontation for the fighters, and the fight will lead the tournament on October 24 at the Etihad Arena. The tournament will begin at 17:00 Moscow time, and the main card matches at 21:00.

In what form did Evloyev

By this fight, 32-year-old Evloev went seven and a half years, winning all ten fights in the UFC by refereeing decisions. He is approaching the fight with a record of 20-0, but does not have a single early victory in the UFC.

In the octagon, he held 49 takedowns, with 22 of them against Leron Murphy, Aljamaine Sterling, Arnold Allen and Diego Lopez.

In the last fight, in March 2026, he defeated Leron Murphy by a majority of referee votes.

What form does Volkanowski have

More experienced in five-round fights, the 38-year-old Volkanowski (28-4) is on a two-win streak. In February of this year, by unanimous decision of the judges, he defeated Diego Lopez and defended the title.

Over the past decade, the Australian has played 18 fights in the UFC, winning 15 of them, and within the semi-light division allowed his opponents to perform only ten takedowns - and each of these fights still ended in his favor.

Victory over Evloev will make Volkanovski the sole UFC record holder for the number of title fights won in the featherweight division. He now has eight such wins, the same number as Jose Aldo.

Who star and UFC experts called the favorite

Quotes "Fonbet": Evloev - 1.82, draw - 51, Volkanovski - 2.03.

Bookmakers estimate the chances of fighters as almost equal. They give from 1.78 to 2.03 for Movsar Evloev’s victory, and from 1.81 to 2.05 for Alexander Volkanovski’s success.

The current holder of the UFC welterweight title and the first double UFC champion from Russia Islam Makhachev claims that Evloev understands the difficulty of fighting with Volkanovski, but the Russian will be able to win at the expense of youth.

“Volkanowski, frankly, is not at the peak he was a couple of years ago. He is still one of the best fighters. I think it will be a very competitive fight, but I hope that Movsar will do his job, Makhachev said.

American ex-UFC fighter Jorge Masvidal noted that Movsar has excellent endurance and is so “sticky” that even when opponents rise to their feet, they do not manage to truly break away from him.

He's got this double button: you're almost gone from him and he just makes contact again. I think the same thing will happen to the wolf. Given Movsar's athleticism, I don't think the Wolf can just stand up and escape. I think every time he is transferred, he will have to endure a real fight, Masvidal told MMA Junkie.

Brazilian UFC fighter Diego Lopez called the fight hard for both and said he did not know whether Movsar could put pressure on Volkanovski at the net, in the ground. “I still think that the wolf ... He beat me twice, so I know he's still here. I still think Volkanowski can take this fight. He is a big legend in this sport, Lopez Heavy said.

Former Bellator champion in two weight categories, and now UFC fighter Patricio Freire said that Volkanovski is still very good, but Evloev is a very skillful wrestler, so he will control the match.

I think he’ll knock Alex down and make the fight as boring as possible. Yevloev will win a boring victory. Volkanovski has little chance of knocking Evloev out. Movsar is younger and stronger. Volkanovski deserves respect, but Evloev will win this fight by the decision of the judges, Freire told Inside Fighting.

Where to look

You can watch the live broadcast of the fight Evloev – Volkanovski at the tournament UFC 333 on the TV channels “Match Fighter” and “Match TV”. It will also be available on the UFC Fight Pass platform.