Upcoming UFC 314 headliner Alexander Volkanovski has urged his peers to make efforts to remain relevant in the social zeitgeist, even though he himself questions where the sport is headed socially.
The Aussie will take on Diego Lopes for the vacant featherweight crown on April 12. And, despite his current three-fight losing skid, Volk remains the favorite. And that has something to do with his popularity, engaging with fans on social media and through content creation.
Volkanovski has even launched a culinary show on YouTube, Cooking with Volk, to viral success. Given the shift of combat sports toward an entertainment-centric sphere, Volkanovski has accepted ‘Darwinism’. And staying relevant in the fight business has two parts these days — winning inside the octagon and gaining acceptance in the larger social ring out there.
Name-dropping the likes of champions Alexandre Pantoja, Dricus du Plessis, and Belal Muhammad, who are dominant athletes but have yet to crack stardom, Volk said that fighters must use UFC as a platform to boost their brand value. They should look to emulate the stardom of former two-weight champion Alex Pereira, advised Volk.
“It’s a tricky one,” Volkanovski said on the FREESTYLEBENDER channel. “Cause it is a new sort of phase. Doesn’t mean it’s not gonna change — that’s always gonna be the case… With myself, I had to build that [star power],” he said.
“Unfortunately, that’s just how it is. That’s the world we live in now — the day we live in…,” added Volk, before talking about the unique “vibe” of Pereira that has earned him a huge fanbase across the world.
“If you’re going out there and you’re starching blokes, you don’t need to say a word. I mean, look at his [Alex Pereira’s] thing. It’s weird. He doesn’t say much, but there’s a lot of character behind it. You know, the Chama-vibe. He’s made not having any emotion his character“, Volkanovski said.
Pereira’s fans are so strongly attached to his stoic character that they even refuse to believe that his loss at UFC 313 was warranted. And even as he makes excuses while preparing for an August rematch against Magomed Ankalaev, they will firmly stand in his corner.
In October 2024, a website called Everything Design called Pereira a ‘case study in personal branding’. It claimed that the Brazilian’s stardom is based on authenticity. He is proud of his origins, has an enigmatic aura about him, his appearance, and his rags-to-riches story from Brazil.
Chael Sonnen believes Vince McMahon played a role in shaping Pereira
Chael Sonnen has given a lot of credit to ex-WWE boss Vince McMahon for making Poatan the brand he is today. Much like Vinnie Mac, Pereira, too, does the little things right.
The former light heavyweight champ eventually does what he wants, but even on the darkest days, he understands what his fans really want for him.
For instance, the way he turned up in Mexico City last week. Periera showed up at a non-PPV event in a non-American city and showed his support for the little guys.
“Yeah, [it’s] Vince McMahon 101,” Sonnen said on Good Guy/Bad Guy. “Give the audience what they want. But not what they’re expecting. And I just think that that’s a little piece from (Alex) Pereira. I don’t think we expected him to surface.”
Pereira’s moves outside the ring may not even be conscious. He is just being himself, perhaps. What Volk was trying to convey to his fellow fighters was that, deliberate or not, creating a persona for oneself outside the ring, and striking a chord with the fans, goes a long way in ensuring relevance.
Needless to say, it also brings in money, recognition, and if backed by results, a lasting legacy too.
