Volkan Oezdemir News

Cole Shelton - February 11, 2019

Anthony Smith has been on a roll since moving up to light heavyweight. First, he had quick knockouts over former champions in Rashad Evans and Shogun Rua. Then, he submitted Volkan Oezdemir in the main event of UFC Moncton in October. That third win set Smith up for a title shot at UFC 235 against arguably the greatest fighter of all time, Jon Jones.

Tom Taylor - December 30, 2018

The UFC’s return to London, England, which goes down on March 16, could be bolstered by an exciting light heavyweight attraction. On Saturday night, amid the excitement of UFC 232, BJPenn.com’s Tom Taylor reported that a fight between former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir and surging contender Dominick Reyes is in the works for the card. I'm told a light heavyweight fight between Volkan Oezdemir and Dominick Reyes is being worked on for #UFCLondon on March 16. Still early stages, but it's on the table.

Tom Taylor - October 28, 2018

On Saturday night, in the main event of UFC Moncton, Switzerland’s Volkan Oezdemir attempted to rebound from a failed title bid to Daniel Cormier with a win over streaking contender Anthony Smith. Unfortunately for Oezdemir, this mission didn’t go as planned. Instead, he was submitted by his foe in the third round. Post-fight Volkan Oezdemir discussed his loss to Anthony Smith. While the Swiss knockout artist was careful not to take away from Smith’s victory, he say he had a little bit of trouble due to a lingering nose injury.

Chris Taylor - October 27, 2018

Tonight’s UFC Moncton event was headlined by a key light heavyweight matchup featuring former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir taking on surging contender Anthony Smith. Volkan Oezdemir was last seen in action at January’s UFC 220 event in Boston, where he suffered a second-round TKO loss to current UFC “champ champ” Daniel Cormier.

Tom Taylor - October 26, 2018

On Saturday night, the UFC makes its anticipated return to The Great White North with its debut event in Moncton, New Brunswick. This UFC Moncton card will be headlined by a crucial light heavyweight contender bout between former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir and surging finisher Anthony Smith. The co-headliner, meanwhile, will see former lightweight contender Michael Johnson step in to replace the reprimanded Zubaira Tukhugov against Conor McGregor training partner Artem Lobov.

Chris Taylor - October 21, 2018

The octagon will make its debut in Moncton, New Brunswick on October 27 for the promotions UFC Fight Night 138: Volkan Oezdemir vs. Anthony Smith event. The fight card is headlined by a key light heavyweight matchup featuring former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir taking on surging contender Anthony Smith.

Tom Taylor - August 16, 2018

UFC light heavyweight contender Volkan Oezdemir recently adopted the nickname “No Time.” This nickname is based on his predilection for first-round finishes. Yet Oezdemir’s next opponent, Anthony Smith, feels he is more deserving of that monicker. Anthony Smith, who battles Volkan Oezdemir in the main event of UFC Moncton on October 27, reminds that he’s produced more first-round finishes than his upcoming opponent. In fact, he’s got more first-round finishes than Oezdemir has fights.

Drake Riggs - August 2, 2018

The UFC’s next event in Canada has its main event! And it’s a good one as two of the light heavyweight division’s quickest finishers face off. After his very impressive quick destruction of the legendary Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Anthony Smith was vying to fill in for Volkan Oezdemir at UFC 227 against Alexander Gustafsson.

Drake Riggs - July 9, 2018

Top-ranked UFC light heavyweight contender, Volkan Oezdemir got some big news today. After an alleged incident involving a scuffle between the recent 205-pound title challenger and a Florida man last year, Oezdemir’s lawyer Bruce Zimet has told MMAFighting that the charges against Oezdemir have been dropped.

Drake Riggs - July 2, 2018

Alexander ‘The Mauler’ Gustafsson’s search for an opponent at UFC 227 on August 4th appears to have come to a surprising end. The perennial top-ranked UFC light heavyweight contender was initially expected to possibly be getting a fight with the former UFC and Strikeforce middleweight champion, Luke Rockhold at the Los Angeles event. But all possibilities of that fell through after Rockhold injured his leg and needed to get surgery to repair it.

Tom Taylor - May 4, 2018

Originally, recent UFC light heavyweight title challenger Volkan Oezdemir was expected to collide with former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua in the co-main event of the UFC’s May 19 debut in Santiago, Chile. In the end, however, the bout was relocated to the main event of the UFC’s July 22 stop in Hamburg, Germany, as a result of the legal issues Oezdemir is currently dealing with in the United States.

Tom Taylor - May 4, 2018

Back in January, in the co-main event of UFC 220, Swiss knockout artist Volkan Oezdemir failed to grab the UFC light heavyweight title from champ Daniel Cormier, succumbing to a meteor shower of second-round ground-strikes. Showing true championship spirit, however, Oezdemir has not been deterred by this failed title bid, and is determined to work his way back to a title shot in No Time at all.

Tom Taylor - April 23, 2018

Originally, former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and recent UFC light heavyweight title challenger Volkan Oezdemir were expected to meet in the co-main event of the UFC’s May 19 stop in Santiago, Chile. Regrettably, the legal troubles that currently surround Oezdemir prevented him from travelling to Chile in May, and the bout was removed from the card. The good news is that this compelling light heavyweight fight has now found a new home. Shogun and Oezdemir will now collide in the main event of the UFC’s June 22 return to Hamburg, Germany, not all that far from Oezdemir’s home in Switzerland.

Tom Taylor - April 13, 2018

The UFC’s May 19 debut in Santiago, Chile seems to have taken a major hit, as Raphael Marinho of Combate is reporting that the card’s Volkan Oezdemir vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua co-headliner is off. According to Combate’s report, Oezdemir will not be able to leave the United States as planned due to legal issues stemming from an incident in late 2017. At this time, it’s not known whether Shogun will fight a new opponent on the card, or if the bout will be rescheduled for an event on American soil.

Tom Taylor - March 26, 2018

Volkan Oezdemir’s first shot at the UFC light heavyweight title did not go as planned, as he was thwarted by the ground-and-pound of champion Daniel Cormier in the bout’s second stanza. Despite this tough loss, the Swiss knockout artist doesn’t seem to be discouraged in the slightest. In fact, he believes he can be the UFC light heavyweight champion within a year. “It’s all about the goal,” Oezdemir told MMAjunkie late last week. “It’s all about where I’m headed… I’m still heading toward the same goal. It was not even one year to [earn] my title shot, and I guarantee you it’s not going to be another year until I’m champion.”

Tom Taylor - March 21, 2018

The UFC’s upcoming debut in Chile, which is scheduled for May 19, will feature one hell of a light heavyweight showdown as former UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has been booked opposite recent light heavyweight title challenger Volkan Oezdemir. This bout was announced on the UFC’s official social media channels on Wednesday evening.

Drake Riggs - March 1, 2018

The UFC light heavyweight division is all over the place these days. Their champion is moving up to challenge the heavyweight champion, the number one contender might be moving up as well, and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua currently holds the longest winning streak in the division. But the wheels have to keep turning! Word out of the rumor mill is that there is potential for a meeting between former title challenger, Glover Teixeira and the most recent title challenger, Volkan Oezdemir. A report initially came out by Graciemag but Nolan King has since said that nothing is official just yet.

Tom Taylor - January 21, 2018

Last night, in the co-main event of UFC 220, Volkan Oezdemir attempted to succeed where 20 other men have failed, and defeat Daniel Cormier. Despite a strong start, Oezdemir quickly fell victim to Cormier’s incredible pressure and wrestling, and ultimately succumbed to a second-round TKO. This loss is Oezdemir’s first in the UFC. Apparently, however, he’s taking it in stride.