Heading into Saturday’s UFC Vegas 18 main event, I focused Alistair Overeem on getting his third straight win and continuing his run toward one final shot at the UFC heavyweight title. Alistair Overeem’s winning streak ended before the mid-point of the second round of his matchup against Alexander Volkov when referee Jason Herzog jumped in and saved a bloody Overeem from additional punishment.
Overeem has fought with much more patience in the past few years. He has used a high defensive guard and waited for openings against his opponents. That style did not serve him well against Volkov, who blasted straight punches through the guard of Overeem, bloodying his nose in the process.
Overeem didn’t seem to have a back-up plan when his first option failed to produce results and that allowed Volkov to pick him apart on the feet. The stoppage victory gave Volkov a two-fight winning streak. In October, Volkov earned a second-round TKO win over Walt Harris.
After the fight, the victor said (via MMA Fighting), “I’m looking to be a champion. I’m going to concentrate on the next camp [and] the next fight.”
Current UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic is scheduled to defend his title against Francis Ngannou at UFC 260.
Below are the final fight stats for the main event of UFC Vegas 18.
Final Stats: Overeem vs. Volkov
| Stats | Alistair Overeem | Alexander Volkov |
|---|---|---|
| Stats | Alistair Overeem | Alexander Volkov |
| Knockdowns | 0 | 1 |
| Sig. Strikes Landed | 10 | 54 |
| Total Strikes Landed | 10 | 54 |
| Sig. Strike Landing Percentage | 50 | 61 |
| Takedowns Landed | 0 | 0 |
| Submission Attempts | 0 | 0 |
| Sig Strikes Landed Head | 3 | 47 |
| Sig Strikes Landed Body | 2 | 3 |
| Sig Strikes Landed Leg | 5 | 4 |
| Sig Strikes Landed Distance | 10 | 40 |
| Sig Strikes Landed Clinch | 0 | 11 |
| Sig Strikes Landed Ground | 0 | 3 |
| Control Time | 0:15 | 0:11 |