Alexander Volkov (fighter)
| Alexander Volkov | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born |
October 24, 1988 Moscow, Soviet Union |
| Other names | Drago |
| Nationality | Russian |
| Height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Weight | 235 lb (107 kg; 16.8 st) |
| Division | Heavyweight |
| Reach | 81 in (206 cm) |
| Style | Ashihara, Kyokushin, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu |
| Fighting out of | Stary Oskol, Belgorod, Russia |
| Team |
Black House Gracie Barra Team Strela |
| Rank |
brown belt in Ashihara kaikan purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu |
| Years active | 2009-present |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Total | 31 |
| Wins | 25 |
| By knockout | 17 |
| By submission | 3 |
| By decision | 5 |
| Losses | 6 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 2 |
| By decision | 3 |
| Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog | |
Alexander Yevgenievich Volkov (Russian: Александр Евгеньевич Волков; born October 24, 1988) is a Russian mixed martial artist who competes in the heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2009, Volkov has competed almost exclusively for the M-1 Global promotion. He was released by the Bellator MMA after two losses. According to the global-mma.com rankings, he is the number 4 ranked heavyweight fighter in the world (outside of the UFC). He is currently M-1 Global Heavyweight Champion.
Mixed martial arts career
Background
Volkov stands at between 6'7"[1] and 7'0"[2]
Volkov currently trains at Red Devil Sport Club, a training facility closely linked to the M-1 Global promotion. His current training partners include the likes of Fedor Emelianenko, Viktor Nemkov, Gegard Mousasi and Amar Suloev. He began training at the start of 2009.[2]
M-1 Global
Volkov's professional MMA debut came in April 2009 when he defeated Nikolay Pleshakov by TKO (punches) in just 80 seconds.[3] Volkov followed this up a month later with another TKO victory, this time against Adam Alikhanov in just 20 seconds.[1] A further month later, Volkov suffered his first professional loss at the hands of Akhmed Sultanov. Midway through the first round, Volkov was forced to tap due to strikes. Volkov then went on a two-fight win streak, both via TKO.[1]
In December 2009, after just eight months as a professional fighter,[1] Volkov faced Ibragim Magomedov at M-1 Challenge 20 - 2009 Finals. Coming in as an underdog, his team simply wanted him to make it through all three rounds, but Volkov exceeded expectations by winning via unanimous decision.[2] Volkov was awarded an M-1 Global ring "as a reward for exceptional performance".[2]
M-1 Eastern European tournament
Within his first year of professional competition, Volkov was competing in the M-1 Eastern European tournament,[2] taking victories in the opening round and the semi-final.[1] Volkov progressed to the M-1 Selection 2010 - Eastern Europe Finals, where a win would put him in line to challenge for the M-1 Global Heavyweight title at the 2010 M-1 Challenge Season events. To reach the championship fight, Volkov first had to take on Maxim Grishin to become the Eastern Europe champion. Unfortunately for Volkov, he fell prey to a rear naked choke early in the opening round and was eliminated.[4]
Post M-1 Eastern European tournament
Less than a month later, Volkov took his first fight outside of M-1 in nearly a year. His opponent was the debuting Eldar Yagudin, who he defeated inside the opening round by TKO (punches).[1]
On August 5, 2011, as part of League-70 Russia vs Brazil, held in Sochi, Russia, Alexander Volkov defeated the undefeated at that time Bulgarian Nedyalko Karadzhov via TKO in the opening round.
Bellator MMA
In September 2012, it was announced that Volkov would compete for Bellator Fighting Championships. He made his U.S. debut in the Bellator season seven heavyweight tournament. In the opening, quarter-final round he faced Brett Rogers at Bellator 75. Volkov dominated the fight by making the most of his reach advantage. Volkov won via unanimous decision.[5] In the semifinals at Bellator 80, he faced Vinicius Queiroz and won via TKO in the second round. On December 14, Volkov fought Richard Hale in a 5 round fight for Bellator Season 7 Heavyweight Tournament Final and Bellator Heavyweight Championship. Volkov won via unanimous decision.
In his first title defense, Volkov faced Vitaly Minakov in the co-main event at Bellator 108 on November 15, 2013. He lost the bout and his title via TKO in the first round.
Volkov faced Mark Holata on March 7, 2014 at Bellator 111 in Heavyweight Tournament.[6] He won the fight via TKO in the first round. Volkov faced Mighty Mo in the semifinals at Bellator 116 on April 11, 2014. He won the fight via spectacular knockout in the first round.
Volkov faced Blagoy Ivanov in the finals on May 17, 2014, at Bellator 120. He won the fight via submission in the second round.
Nearly a year since his last fight for the promotion, Volkov faced Tony Johnson at Bellator 136 on April 10, 2015.[7] He lost the fight via split decision.
Volkov faced Cheick Kongo at Bellator 139 on June 26, 2015.[8] He lost the fight via unanimous decision marking his second consecutive loss being cut by the Bellator MMA.[9]
Volkov is expected to face former bellator light heavyweight champion Attila Vegh on June 16th 2016 in M-1 Challenge 18
Championships and accomplishments
- M-1 Global
- M-1 Global Heavyweight Championship (one time)
- M-1 Eastern European tournament Runner-Up
Mixed martial arts record
| Professional record breakdown | ||
| 31 matches | 25 wins | 6 losses |
| By knockout | 17 | 1 |
| By submission | 3 | 3 |
| By decision | 5 | 2 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 25–6 | Denis Smoldarev | Submission (triangle choke) | M-1 Challenge 64: Shlemenko vs. Vasilevsky | February 19, 2016 | 3 | 0:41 | Moscow, Russia | Won vacant M-1 Global Heavyweight title |
| Loss | 24–6 | Cheick Kongo | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 139 | June 26, 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | Mulvane, Kansas, United States | |
| Loss | 24–5 | Tony Johnson | Decision (split) | Bellator 136 | April 10, 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | Irvine, California, United States | |
| Win | 24–4 | Alexei Kudin | Decision (unanimous) | Union MMA Pro | February 21, 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | Krasnodar, Russia | |
| Win | 23–4 | Roy Boughton | TKO (punches) | Tech-Krep FC: Battle of Heroes | December 12, 2014 | 1 | 0:40 | Saint Petersburg, Leningrad, Russia | |
| Win | 22–4 | Blagoy Ivanov | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Bellator 120 | May 17, 2014 | 2 | 1:08 | Southaven, Mississippi, United States | Bellator Season 10 Heavyweight Tournament Final |
| Win | 21–4 | Siala-Mou Siliga | KO (head kick) | Bellator 116 | April 11, 2014 | 1 | 2:44 | Temecula, California, United States | Bellator Season 10 Heavyweight Tournament Semifinal |
| Win | 20–4 | Mark Holata | TKO (punches) | Bellator 111 | March 7, 2014 | 1 | 1:21 | Thackerville, Oklahoma, United States | Bellator Season 10 Heavyweight Tournament Quarterfinal |
| Loss | 19–4 | Vitaly Minakov | TKO (punches) | Bellator 108 | November 15, 2013 | 1 | 2:57 | Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States | Lost the Bellator Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 19–3 | Richard Hale | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 84 | December 14, 2012 | 5 | 5:00 | Hammond, Indiana, United States | Bellator Season 7 Heavyweight Tournament Final, Won the vacant Bellator Heavyweight Championship. |
| Win | 18–3 | Vinicius Queiroz | TKO (punches) | Bellator 80 | November 9, 2012 | 2 | 4:59 | Hollywood, Florida, United States | Bellator Season 7 Heavyweight Tournament Semifinal |
| Win | 17–3 | Brett Rogers | Decision (unanimous) | Bellator 75 | October 5, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Hammond, Indiana, United States | Bellator Season 7 Heavyweight Tournament Quarterfinal |
| Win | 16–3 | Stefan Stankovic | TKO (punches) | FEFoMP: Mayor Cup 2012 | May 26, 2012 | 1 | 4:27 | Khabarovsk, Khabarovsk Krai, Russia | |
| Win | 15–3 | Ricco Rodriguez | Decision (unanimous) | BF: Baltic Challenge 3 | February 23, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Kaliningrad, Russia | |
| Win | 14–3 | Arsen Abdulkerimov | TKO (punches) | M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Monson | November 20, 2011 | 1 | 0:26 | Moscow, Russia | |
| Win | 13–3 | Bahodir Ibrogimov | TKO (punches) | MMA Corona Cup 1 | October 7, 2011 | 2 | 2:22 | Moscow, Russia | |
| Win | 12–3 | Nedyalko Karadzhov | TKO (punches) | League-70: Russia vs. Brazil | August 5, 2011 | 1 | 2:41 | Sochi, Russia | |
| Win | 11–3 | Denis Goltsov | TKO (punches) | M-1 Challenge 25: Zavurov vs. Enomoto | April 28, 2011 | 2 | 3:05 | Saint Petersburg, Leningrad, Russia | |
| Win | 10–3 | Ruslan Chapko | TKO (punches) | Mix Fight Tournament | January 15, 2011 | 1 | N/A | Voronezh, Russia | |
| Loss | 9–3 | Pat Bennett | Decision (unanimous) | M-1 Challenge 22: Narkun vs. Vasilevsky | December 10, 2010 | 4 | 5:00 | Moscow, Russia | The fight went to an additional fourth round |
| Win | 9–2 | Evgeni Babich | TKO (punches) | LM: Tournament 3 | September 18, 2010 | 1 | 2:10 | Lipetsk, Russia | |
| Win | 8–2 | Eldar Yagudin | TKO (punches) | Ratnoe Pole | August 7, 2010 | 1 | 4:34 | Ryazan, Russia | |
| Loss | 7–2 | Maxim Grishin | Submission (rear-naked choke) | M-1 Selection 2010: Eastern Europe Finals | July 22, 2010 | 1 | 2:39 | Moscow, Russia | Eastern Europe tournament final |
| Win | 7–1 | Alexander Romaschenko | Submission (rear-naked choke) | M-1 Selection 2010: Eastern Europe Round 3 | May 28, 2010 | 1 | 2:59 | Kiev, Ukraine | Eastern Europe tournament semifinal |
| Win | 6–1 | Vitalii Yalovenko | TKO (doctor stoppage) | M-1 Selection 2010: Eastern Europe Round 2 | April 10, 2010 | 2 | 1:05 | Kiev, Ukraine | Eastern Europe tournament opening round |
| Win | 5–1 | Ibragim Magomedov | Decision (unanimous) | M-1 Challenge 20: 2009 Finals | December 3, 2009 | 3 | 5:00 | Saint Petersburg, Leningrad, Russia | Russian Team Championship Finals |
| Win | 4–1 | Smbat Zakaryan | TKO (punches) | ProFC: Union Nation Cup 3 | October 30, 2009 | 1 | 4:20 | Rostov-on-Don, Russia | 3rd Stage Of The CIS Cup Team |
| Win | 3–1 | Abdulhalik Magomedov | TKO (punches) | M-1 Challenge: 2009 Selections 8 | October 4, 2009 | 1 | 4:43 | Moscow, Russia | 8th Stage Russian Team Championship |
| Loss | 2–1 | Akhmed Sultanov | Submission (armbar) | M-1 Challenge: 2009 Selections 4 | June 24, 2009 | 1 | 2:50 | Saint Petersburg, Leningrad, Russia | 4th Stage Russian Team Championship |
| Win | 2–0 | Adam Alikhanov | TKO (punches) | M-1 Challenge: 2009 Selections 3 | May 28, 2009 | 1 | 0:20 | Saint Petersburg, Leningrad Oblast, Russia | 3rd Stage Russian Team Championship |
| Win | 1–0 | Nikolay Pleshakov | TKO (punches) | M-1 Challenge: 2009 Selections 2 | April 19, 2009 | 1 | 1:20 | Saint Petersburg, Leningrad, Russia | 2nd Stage Russian Team Championship |
The record box is based on Volkov's record on Sherdog.[1]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Alexander Volkov". sherdog.com. Retrieved September 8, 2010.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Schaap, J. (March 3, 2010). "The biggest Russian sensation of 2009 gets his reward". m-1global.com. Retrieved September 20, 2010.
- ↑ "Sunday's M-1 card to stream on Sherdog.com". sherdog.com. April 18, 2009.
- ↑ "M-1 Selection 2010 Europe Finals feature spectacular performances". sherdog.com. July 22, 2010.
- ↑ "Bizarre groin foul finish puts Thiago Santos past Eric Prindle at Bellator 75". sherdog.com. October 5, 2012.
- ↑ "former Russian champion vs. super american mma fighter". mmafighting.com. March 6, 2014.
- ↑ Jason Floyd (March 11, 2015). "Bellator 136 adds Alexander Volkov vs. Tony Johnson and Fabricio Guerreiro vs. John Teixeira". themmareport.com.
- ↑ Chuck Mindenhall (April 21, 2015). "Cheick Kongo to clash with Alexander Volkov at Bellator 139". mmafighting.com.
- ↑ "Bellator releases five fighters, including former champion". bloodyelbow.com. October 31, 2015.