Alexander Volkanovski stopped previously unbeaten Movsar Evloev at 4:54 of the second round at UFC 333 on Oct. 24 in Abu Dhabi.
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Alexander Volkanovski retained his UFC featherweight championship at UFC 333 on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, stopping previously unbeaten challenger Movsar Evloev at 4:54 of the second round.
The 38-year-old Australian sent Evloev to the canvas late in the second after landing punches, and the referee stepped in with six seconds remaining. Volkanovski’s win improved his record to 29-4, while Evloev fell to 20-1 and suffered his first loss in 11 UFC appearances.
The victory marked Volkanovski’s ninth UFC featherweight title-fight win, tying Jose Aldo for the most in division history. Volkanovski also improved to 16-3 in UFC, with all six of his stoppage victories coming by knockout or technical knockout.
In the fight, Volkanovski developed swelling and a cut beneath his left eye but continued to find openings. The challenger had success with first-round takedowns, but Volkanovski repeatedly regained his footing and pressed the action early.
Volkanovski said he was “just glad that I had a No. 1 contender to fight, a clear one,” and he later discussed wanting to keep competing as more fighters pursue the No. 1 spot.
In the bantamweight title co-main event, Petr Yan retained his championship with a unanimous decision over former champ Merab Dvalishvili. Yan improved to 21-5 while Dvalishvili fell to 21-6, with Yan said to be in his second reign as bantamweight champion.
Dvalishvili entered with a UFC-record 119 takedowns, including a title-fight record 20 against Cory Sandhagen.
Elsewhere on the card, Whittier’s Aaron Pico stopped Losene Keita at 1:14 of the first round in a featherweight bout. Pico dropped Keita with a straight right hand and finished with a flurry, winning after coming into the fight needing “to fight smarter.”
Flyweight Lone’er Kavanagh earned a first-round knockout, stopping Ramazan Temirov at 4:28. Kavanagh caught Temirov with a left uppercut and followed with punches to complete the finish, handing Temirov his first UFC loss after his opening three victories with the promotion.
Second-ranked heavyweight Alexander Volkov capped his 38th birthday with a unanimous decision over No. 7 Rizvan Kuniev. Volkov won by decision to improve his record to 41-11, while Kuniev dropped to 15-4-1 with one no-contest, and Volkov said, “What should I do to get a title shot? Answer me, please.”
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