Sergei Pavlovich is taking full responsibility for his loss to Alexander Volkov this past weekend at UFC Saudi Arabia.
The former UFC title challenger lost a lopsided decision in his first fight back after falling to Tom Aspinall by knockout back in November 2023. There was some underlying bad blood between the former teammates with Pavlovich actually shoving Volkov after he approached him to shake hands following the three round fight.
Late Sunday night, Pavlovich addressed his performance for the first time.
“It wasn’t my day; nothing went according to plan,” Pavlovich wrote on Instagram. “I was ready for anything, but I was too focused on getting a knockout and took too many unnecessary hits. The result was a loss by points. This was very emotional and tough for me, especially knowing that I didn’t meet your expectations.
“Thank you all for your support! I promise to come back stronger and wiser.”
It was a tough outing for Pavlovich as he struggled to get inside on the taller, longer Volkov for the majority of the fight. He continuously swung with big, heavy punches as he noted but never really hurt Volkov during the three round fight.
In return, Volkov continuously circled around the outside of the octagon and stabbed at his former training partner with a nasty lead jab that busted up Pavlovich’s nose and left him bloody by the end of the fight.
The disappointing performance cost Pavlovich his second loss in a row, which has never happened to him before during his career.
The 32-year-old Russia now attempts to pick up the pieces and get back on track when he eventually makes his next appearance in the UFC.