Fighters Weigh In: Most Back Volkanovski Over Evloev at UFC 333

UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi is headlined by a featherweight title fight between champion Alexander Volkanovski and undefeated contender Movsar Evloev. The betting line is close: at the time of the poll Volkanovski was a -112 favorite and Evloev a -108 underdog. To get a different view of the matchup, seven active UFC fighters were asked for their predictions, and most of them expect the champion to hand Evloev the first loss of his career.

The case for Volkanovski

Five of the seven sided with the champion, and several of them cited his well-rounded skill set. Bantamweight Dan Ige said Volkanovski is too well-rounded and that Evloev lacks the power to finish him. Featherweight Kai Kamaka III described Evloev as more of a specialist and argued that only a well-rounded fighter can beat Volkanovski, who can keep the fight standing and pick the challenger apart.

Lightweight Kyle Nelson acknowledged that Volkanovski is getting older but still believes his skill set is good enough to win. Lightweight Drakkar Klose called him a very good champion who is extremely hard to beat, expecting him to defend the wrestling and use his striking. Bantamweight John Castaneda pointed to Volkanovski's cardio and his ability to fight anywhere, and predicted that Evloev would struggle in the championship rounds.

The case for Evloev

Two fighters went with the challenger. Strawweight Gillian Robertson expects Evloev to win a very close decision. Lightweight Diego Ferreira also picked Evloev, believing his wrestling and grappling can control Volkanovski over the distance.

The final tally:

• Picking Volkanovski: Dan Ige, Kai Kamaka III, Kyle Nelson, Drakkar Klose, John Castaneda
• Picking Evloev: Gillian Robertson, Diego Ferreira

Both fighters who picked Evloev pointed to his grappling, while those who backed Volkanovski cited his all-round skills, his cardio and his ability to defend takedowns.