Stefan Struve vs Alexander Volkov is a real battle of heavyweight giants

UFC welterweight and commentator Dan Hardy looks ahead to this weekend’s event and a battle of heavyweight giants as the UFC returns to Rotterdam, Netherlands

Stefan ‘Skyscraper’ Struve is well known at this level (Getty)

This weekend in Rotterdam, a battle of heavyweight giants is set to take place in the UFC’s famed Octagon. Decorated Russian striker, Alexander Volkov will face the tallest opponent of his professional career, in seven-foot tall, Stefan ‘Skyscraper’ Struve. Usually the taller fighter in the arena, Volkov will have to approach this dangerous foe in a very different way. Struve has grown up in the UFC. We have seen his ups and downs, his triumphs and failures, his highlights and injuries. He has grown into a monstrous athlete with skills and experience to boot.

Given his time at the top level, and his stand-out frame, many fans are familiar with ‘The Skyscraper’, but Volkov is the unknown threat in this division. His experience outside the Octagon, campaigning around the world in various organisations and picking off UFC veterans, has built up enough credibility to step into the UFC’s top 10 and shut down long-serving veteran in April, Roy Nelson - a man who also happens to have a TKO victory over Struve. The much improved Dutch fighter will be looking to jump Volkov in the rankings and take his place above the relative newcomer.

With such tremendous height I’ve always felt like Struve under-utilised his reach, often getting backed up to the fence by much shorter fighters and crowded with big strikes. Sometimes he would catch them on their way in. Sometimes he would be able to ground them and begin wrapping them up with his long limbs, but occasionally he would get caught in the chaos and put down. Volkov will rely heavily on this aspect and I expect him to come crashing forward behind a flurry of punches.

Struve has recently relocated to the Florida-based team of celebrated coach Henri Hooft, a man that understands the benefits of an 84 inch reach and someone who can educate Stefan in its advantages. Whether Struve can utilise it against Volkov or not is yet to be seen, but I still feel like his best advantage is on the floor. In his most recent outing at UFC 204 we saw him wrap up Daniel Omielanczuk with a beautiful D’arce choke and get the second round submission finish. I’ve heard that he has been working hard on his wrestling, so perhaps a more grappling-heavy approach is in the cards.

For Volkov this is a chance to take out one of the most recognisable and respected heavyweights in the UFC and position himself amongst the top five in the division, ready to start picking fights. It’s a tall order, but with his experience and understanding of being the taller man, he may be able to reverse his thinking and place himself on the other side of the reach advantage. With Struve having a win over the current divisional king, Stipe Miocic, he is perfectly aligned to walk into a title shot with one more win. Certainly an attractive fight for the fans, but Volkov has a great opportunity to steal that thunder.

In the co-main event we have an Australian debutant, Rob Wilkinson, coming in to face a ferocious puncher, Siyar Bahadurzada. Bahadurzada has been inconsistent in his UFC career so far, mainly due to injuries. When we have seen him at his best he has looked devastating, wrecking Paulo Thiago in seconds with a perfectly timed two-punch combination on debut in 2012. The unbeaten Wilkinson will not be satisfied with a loss in his UFC debut, and if you’ve seen any of the Aussie’s fights before, you will agree that anything other than a first-round finish is not acceptable either. A tall, rangy fighter with a stinging jab, Wilkinson will push into range behind it and look to wrestle.


 Volkov is the unknown threat in this division 
 (Getty)

His grappling skills may not be strong enough to finish Siyar early, but they could definitely stifle his attack and frustrate him. Not to mention exhaust him and make him more vulnerable in the later rounds. For Bahadurzada, a clean knockout is as ideal as is it expected. With a finishing rate over 50%, you expect people to fall over when you hit them and in Siyar’s experience, they usually do. They have been bumped up to the co-main slot as Germaine de Randamie has pulled out due to injury. Her opponent, Marion Reneau will now face Talita Bernardo.

Watch UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Struve live on BT Sport 2 from 8pm BST on Saturday 2^nd September, or watch the Prelims exclusively on UFC Fight Pass from 4:45pm BST