Everyone loves an underdog, and everyone loves to call themselves one. But there comes a time when you’re so good at what you do, that that’s simply not an option.
Most athletes try to do it, ranging from actual underdogs to the time Tom Brady and the rest of the New England Patriots declared that nobody believed in them anymore – while they were the reigning Super Bowl champions and very much believed in by everyone.
Featherweight world champion Alexander Volkanovski would rank somewhere towards the higher end of that spectrum.
He’s undefeated in the UFC, has dismantled several of the top fighters in the world and goes into his fight against ‘The Korean Zombie’ Jung Chan Sung this weekend as a $1.10 favourite.
ULTIMATE GUIDE: Everything you need to know about the 2022 Masters
READ MORE: ‘Bewildered’ NRL icon’s alarming take on Tigers farce
READ MORE: Leaked texts reveal key man amid Hawks racism row
READ MORE: Aussie golfer lifts lid on secret Tiger practice hit
But, he knows he’s no underdog – and thinks he’s better for having abandoned any attempts to paint himself as one.
“I’m going to have that underdog mentality to get me better but at the same time, I felt like it was affecting my confidence,” he told Wide World of Sports.
“I’d always be sort of pulling myself back and second guessing myself.
“Don’t get me wrong, it makes you work hard, but I felt like it was taking over a lot of other things where now, I’ve found the perfect balance. I’ve still got the drive to train hard and bust my arse, but at the same time, I’m comfortable.”
He who hesitates is lost is no truer a proverb than in a fight, and now, armed with the knowledge that he’s earned the right to be called the best, Volkanovski has no fears of uncertainty.
“I can move this forward, I can use it as a tool. I don’t be like ‘oh I don’t know, I don’t know’ and the next minute you’re holding back on this move, you’re pulling yourself back sometimes.
“I’m confident. Yes this will work. This works because this, this, this. I’m confident in what I see.
“I’ve got the confidence of someone that is champion and knows he’s the best in the world. I’m always going to have doubters and haters but people are starting to go ‘this bloke, he’s the best in the world’. I don’t think anyone is trying to disrespect Zombie, they’re just giving credit to me.”
It’s all about self-improvement. For someone who was still working full-time five years ago, it will never be enough – a mindset that a lot of people lack.
For some, making it to the UFC would be enough. For some, beating a legendary figure like Jose Aldo at the backend of his career would be enough. And for some, winning the title is the end of the line.
But not for the south coast boy, who knows that perfection is a fools’ errand.
“This camp, and where I am now, I can comfortably say that I am so much better than I was last time I stepped in that octagon,” he said.
“When you talk about knowledge, confidence, all of it. The freedom I’m going to have in the cage, everything. Apart from fitness, because I’m always the fittest I can be.”
“Not only I think that – everyone is telling me this is the sharpest they’ve seen me, now I’ve just got to go out and make sure I don’t do anything silly in there.”
There’s an assured confidence without any arrogance that he exudes – it’s why he’s getting cover stories in non-sports publications, and why one of the oldest pubs in Wollongong, The Illawarra, has been temporarily re-named The Volkanovski Hotel, in his honour.
“It’s every man’s dream to get a pub named after them. It’s only temporary but it’s cool, it just shows the support I have back home. Everyone’s hyped up about it,” he said.
“Obviously I’m still fun and I can still kick arse when I need to, but at the same time I’m respectful and I feel like I’m a guy people can look up to.
“I’m not perfect, no one is, but I feel like MMA fighters get a bad wrap a lot of the time when some of the nicest people I’ve met are through this sport.”
“The sport is growing and I feel like I can bring a new look. Not all of us guys are chucking dollies through windows, I’m a family man, I’m easy to get along with.”
The latter quote is of course a reference to Conor McGregor – someone whom Volkanovski would entertain fighting if the chance arose.
“I worry about my division – but – if there’s time, and my division can’t sort itself out, 100 per cent you can be calling people out,” he said.
“There’s fights that you can look at as long as there’s nobody next in line. I want three fights this year and if that hasn’t happened, give me a lightweight fight, give me a Conor fight. Give me something big.”
“There’s plenty of options – and again, it just depends on what’s happening. If there’s somebody who everyone’s screaming their name in the featherweight division then that’s the fight. But if not – I’ll go elsewhere.”
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!