Alexander Volkanovski stars in hilarious video about being ‘too old’ ahead of UFC 298

If there’s a narrative being spread about you, rather than get mad, leaning into it is a spectacular defense — which is exactly what Alexander Volkanovski is doing ahead of his intriguing title defense next weekend.

Volkanovski will defend his featherweight title against surging contender Ilia Topuria in the main event of UFC 298, which takes place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. Volkanovski, 35, has been hearing from fans since the fight was announced that, perhaps, his best days are behind him, and that his age could play a factor, so “The Great” partnered up with Sportsbet for a video where he essentially acts the part in leaning into the “over 35 curse” in championship bouts in the welterweight and below weight classes.

Check out the hilarious skit in the video below.

Volkanovski ties in all of the clichés attached to older individuals — from passing out black licorice, to needing things repeated to him, to even responding to an opponent on social media using a typewriter.

The long reigning 145-pound champ enters his first fight of 2024 in unfamiliar territory coming off of his first losing year in the UFC. While he delivered an incredible performance in his lone title defense against Yair Rodriguez at UFC 290, that was sandwiched in between two losses to lightweight champ Islam Makhachev — including a close decision in MMA Fighting’s 2023 Fight of the Year at UFC 284, and a first-round knockout loss in the short notice rematch at UFC 294 in October.