As a potential rematch looms, it appears there’s no animosity between Ilia Topuria and Alexander Volkanovski.
UFC featherweight champion Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) and former titleholder Volkanovski (26-4 MMA, 13-3 UFC) are both in Sydney for Saturday’s UFC 312 event. Coincidentally, they will be cornering against each other, with Topuria’s brother Aleksandre set to make his octagon debut against Volkanovski’s teammate Colby Thicknesse in a bantamweight bout on the prelims (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+).
The pair, who are rumored for a potential second encounter this year after Topuria took the belt off Volkanovski by second-round knockout at UFC 298 in February 2024, were plenty cordial when they crossed paths backstage at Friday’s ceremonial weigh-ins.
Topuria and Volkanovski greeted each other and shared words, then took a photo with Charles Oliveira and UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber (via Instagram):
Related
How UFC 312’s Aleksandre Topuria put his career on hold to help brother Ilia
UFC 312’s Colby Thicknesse: Aleksandre Topuria ‘not his brother’ and hasn’t beaten anybody
Alexander Volkanovski not surprised with UFC champ Ilia Topuria’s ‘cocky’ rematch prediction
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 312.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Video: Ilia Topuria, Alexander Volkanovski have friendly backstage encounter at UFC 312
