Alexander Volkanovski vs Movsar Evloev: coach Eugene Bareman expects close fight

Volkanovski's coach Eugene Bareman says Evloev's style is misunderstood, arguing the unbeaten Russian keeps punching in grappling exchanges where Islam Makhachev would hold opponents down.

By Combat Sports UK Staff · Published Thu 22 Oct, 03:43 UK · AI-assisted reporting

Eugene Bareman believes Movsar Evloev's style is misread. Before Alexander Volkanovski defends his featherweight title against him in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, the coach said the unbeaten Russian keeps striking throughout grappling exchanges in a way Islam Makhachev does not.

The comparison matters because many have pointed to Volkanovski's success against Makhachev in their first fight when predicting the outcome of this main event. Bareman, who coaches Volkanovski at City Kickboxing, expects his fighter to edge the rounds but does not think Evloev will let the fight get away from him. He said: “10-9, 10-9, 10-9, but only by the hair of it. I think just Movsar’s too good. He’s too good to pull away from, but we’re going to try.” Bareman said Evloev is not the kind of fighter who looks to gain control and hug opponents, and instead stays active landing strikes from grappling positions. He told She Loves The Gloves that Evloev always has something hitting the man underneath him, adding: “You can’t say that about someone like Islam [Makhachev] or Khabib [Nurmagomedov], who will spend long periods of time, like 45 seconds, a minute, holding you.” Where the current welterweight champion is more of a submission threat, Bareman described Evloev's approach as “death by a thousand punches”. He believes Evloev could choose to throw more damaging shots, but keeps his output high to stop referees breaking up the grappling exchanges.

Evloev's lack of finishes has drawn criticism from several fighters. Former featherweight champion Jose Aldo urged the UFC to cut him if he suffers the first loss of his career on Saturday. Evloev has credited educated fans for keeping him in the UFC, while Bareman rates the challenger highly regardless of how few of his fights have ended early.

Given Evloev's record, a finish in the main event looks more likely to come from Volkanovski, although Bareman is not expecting one.

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Movsar Evloev Islam Makhachev