On June 22 at the UFC on ABC 6 tournament in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a fight between two Russian heavyweights, Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov, will take place. They trained in the same gym years ago and now hold the third and fifth spots in the UFC rankings.
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In an exclusive interview with Telecomasia.net, Volkov:
- found many benefits in his match with Sergei Pavlovich;
- named a suitable opponent for Dana White;
- expressed concerns about a potential machine uprising;
- praised artificial intelligence for predicting his fight;
- discussed how he creates funny videos.
"Dana White could fight Joe Rogan"
– Alexander, would you have prepared for the fight in the USA if you had known in advance that the bout would take place in Saudi Arabia?
– The American camp is not only for brief acclimatization in the US. It's more productive to train here. I work with physical conditioning coaches in a gym with many sparring partners. I can practice the skills I need and diversify my technical arsenal. I used to train only in Russia and went to the US just for fights, having short camps. Now there's more room for maneuver. We didn't have acclimatization issues, we arrived in Saudi Arabia early.
– Have you texted or called Sergei Pavlovich after Dana White announced your meeting?
– No, we haven't talked. We aren’t close, anyway. We congratulate each other on victories on social media, but we don't actually talk to each other.
– In any case, the fight is not perfect for you and Pavlovich. Did you ever wish for someone to fight Dana White?
– He could fight Joe Rogan. They're built similarly. Dana White does his job, matchmakers do theirs. Dana White didn't make the card; he only approved and announced it. It's a bit more complex.
"I wasn't threatened in the UFC"
– If you refused to fight, would they have left you without bouts for a while?
– It was very much possible, so I had to agree. Besides, there were no fights. They offered me one opponent twice (Sergey Spivak), but he declined. I didn't want to stay without fights in the next few months. Yes, the tournament was very important for the UFC. They made that clear to me.
– Did they make it clear through financial motivation or threats?
– No, they presented arguments. Not threats. They said it was necessary. There was an announcement, and some fighters were not aware of their bouts. But the UFC needed the card to happen.
– What do you remember from your last sparring with Pavlovich?
– I barely remember it. I remember only half of the sparring, how it started. Then I don’t remember anything.
– It sounds like you were knocked out cold.
– I don't know, hard to say. I lost that last time.
"It's a little scary if there's a rise of the machines"
– But artificial intelligence predicted your victory in the second round. Do you trust computers?
– How cool is that? It's impressive. It's not like the AI outright 'predicted' it, but this thing is cool. It's a little scary if there's a rise of the machines. But it's still fun. Do I believe it? Let's see if the prediction is true.
– Does your fight with Pavlovich make sense from an athletic standpoint?
It does make sense. Imagine someone wins and becomes a contender for the belt, most likely. A win-win for Russian fighters. We're depriving a foreigner of that chance. The UFC has done us a favor, regardless of whether Sergei or I win. Someone will be back in the title race. I think the league has a goal to have a Russian fighter at the top and next to the belt.
– Will you fight Pavlovich during the staredown?
– There are no reasons for that yet.
"Unpredictability adds endorphins and dopamine"
– What is the likelihood that the fight will make it to a decision?
– This needs to be mathematically calculated and analyzed. Artificial intelligence will provide a more accurate answer. It's a whole science, the theory of probability. I can't just say it.
– What does your intuition tell you?
– Intuition is not probability, it's intuition. I used to be an engineer once. Probability is a whole science. Anything can happen. Unpredictability adds endorphins and dopamine. It sparks our interest and excitement about an event. That's how casinos and social networks operate. You don't get an interesting Reel every time.
– Speaking of Reels, I saw the video you’ve made. How long does it take to make one? Do you do it alone?
– I come up with ideas, and someone helps me with the editing. A lot of times it's a joint effort. I wouldn't post anything I didn't create myself or I didn't approve. Of course, I get help. I can't do everything by myself. You need skills for editing too, to make it look good, and not like something done haphazardly. First, you need someone who edits well. Second, I practice and prepare. I need to be focused on fights. But the ideas are mine.
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