To the extent that it is possible to fly under the radar while winning 20 consecutive fights, Alexander Volkanovski did so for a long time. No more.
Even as the burly ex-rugby player rode into the Ultimate Fighting Championship on a 10-fight win streak amassed mostly in his native Australia, then proceeded to extend it, “Alexander the Great” seemed like an afterthought in the incredibly deep and dynamic featherweight division. Not until his December 2018 knockout of perennial contender Chad Mendes did the general public realize that Volkanovski was closing in on a well-deserved title shot.