"My plan is for Volkanovski to finish in the third or fourth round."

Movsar Yevloev will fight Alex Volkanovsky for the featherweight title at UFC 333 on October 24. The Russian goes undefeated: 10 wins in 10 fights in the UFC, all by judicial decisions. Yevloev is regularly criticized for his lack of early victories, but this is also his uniqueness.: So far, no opponent has managed to beat Movsar at the distance of the fight. Now he has to test his win-win formula in a duel with one of the greatest featherweights in history. In an interview with Izvestia and Sport-Express, Yevloev spoke about his plan to fight Volkanovsky, his pursuit of a first-place finish in the UFC, a possible move to lightweight, and his attitude to criticism.

— There were only 19 fighters who won 10 or more fights in a row in the UFC. There were 132 UFC champions. That is, winning 10 fights in a row is more difficult than becoming a champion. Does such an achievement give you moral satisfaction?

"Not really. To take the belt would be a more significant achievement for me than to remain undefeated. This is, of course, a very good bonus. But when you have a belt around your waist, it means that you are a champion. And you can remain undefeated for various reasons — choose some convenient opponents... Which, of course, I didn't do. But there are fighters with zero in the defeat column, and no one talks about them much, because it's very important who you fight and how you achieved such a record.

— The featherweight division has the densest and strongest champion line: Aldo, Conor, Holloway, Wolf, Topuria. Everyone became superstars, two double champions. Now your last name can be added to them. What do you think you've brought to the history of this division, what have you pushed it forward in?

— To be honest, I don't think I pushed this division by somehow achieving 10 wins in a row and becoming champion. But I will make my dream come true — and the dream of so many of my fans. This is important to me. But I think everything is still ahead, that there is still something to say. First of all, we go for the belt.

— Didn't you think that it would be cooler for all the haters to continue their series of victories with decisions than to start winning ahead of schedule?

— I've often thought about it. But I think 10 wins by decisions is enough to turn over this chapter. We will go for the finish line this time.

— Do you have a clear idea how Alex can be "strangled"?

— There is. There are several scenarios for the development of events. Suffice it to say that the plan is to finish in the third or fourth round.

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— Peter Yan and Alex Volkanovsky are often called the smartest fighters in the UFC. You sparred with both of them. Who has a higher fighting IQ?

"Alex's, I think." But Peter Yan is special in his own way. I would not say that he wins only due to IQ. He has speed, good hands, and very good takedown defense. He keeps a high pace. But in terms of fighting IQ, I think Alex is cooler.

— Volkanovski has lost twice by hikik-knockout. You had a haikik knockout in M-1, you said that in Thailand you punched this kick 100 times per training session. Are you working a lot on this beat now?

— We didn't really have a scenario that we could only use this. We were also working on a high kick in the head. But this is a very small part of what we were preparing for this fight. I think it will be interesting for everyone in terms of the sports component — what we will see on Saturday evening as a result.

— In the fight with Leron Murphy, for the first time you worked so much from a southpaw. It is very difficult to master another stance. Who helped you with this, why did you decide to master it?

— This was an urgent need, due to the fact that I had a knee injury, it was difficult for me to keep my weight in the center, being in my usual stance. I sometimes had to rebuild. This may have been beneficial. I continue to work in both racks. When you need to move an opponent, it's always better to take takedowns from both sides than only one way.

— You said you were ready to move up to lightweight behind Ilia Topuria. Are you interested in him now, without the zeros and the belt?

- yes. I think there will be an intrigue in this fight anyway. But I don't know how possible this fight is in the near future, because I haven't finished my work in my division yet, I haven't taken the belt yet, I need to take it back, and then prove that I didn't take it by accident, to make at least a couple of defenses. The size allows me to move to a new division for myself. It gets harder every time, both the weight training process and more muscle mass. It's only a matter of time before I switch divisions.

— You are famous for your physical fitness and dedication in training. What's your heart rate record?

— I have had bradycardia since childhood. And my pulse doesn't rise particularly much — at rest it can be 36-38. I can stay up all night, and the bracelet thinks I've been in a deep sleep all night. When I do cardio, my heart rate doesn't rise above 172-175. So I can run at a high pace for an hour and keep my heart rate at 170-175. To be honest, I don't really bother with this heart rate monitor. I bought it, put it on, and am wearing it so that I don't feel sorry [for making the purchase].

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— Volkanovsky said that he knows very little about Ingushetia. Do you know which city Alex is from?

- no. I know he's from Australia... or New Zealand... From Australia, right?

- yes.

"From what city?"

— Wollongong.

— It sounds threatening! It's like Voldemort. Or Mordor!

— Do you know what Australia's capital is?

— Adelaide... But not Sydney.

"Not Sydney. It's not obvious.

— I was supposed to fight in Adelaide, but the fight was moved to another place... In my opinion, on A.

— Canberra. A small town.

— Oh, OK. I'm not good at geography!

— Ingushetia often tops Russian ratings for high life expectancy. What's the secret? And do you have any centenarians in your family?

— I think it has to do with nature, with the fact that we like to eat natural food, not chemical food. Nevertheless, things are progressing now. And unfortunately, we are losing this identity. And there are no people in the family who have lived for more than 100 years. Grandma was 84, grandpa was 86. But that's not bad either, I think.

— Rajabali Shaidulaev has signed a contract with the MVP, but they are waiting for him in the UFC. 20-0, 19 finishes. Is he already in the UFC top 5?

— I think so. His last fight proved it (against A.J. McKee, Shaidullaev won by unanimous decision. — Ed.), he was opposed by a good featherweight, who has been in the top for a long time. I think he has every chance of making the top 5 and reaching the title.