“Just a job”: How Volkanovski stays true to himself in and out of The Octagon

Three things in life are certain: Death, taxes and Alex Volkanovski being an Aussie treasure.

He opened the doors to Hotel Ravesis in Bondi to a huge crowd of fans this past weekend, high fived them all on the way into the venue and, with the help of Tyro Payments, shouted them a $20,000 bar tab (in case you needed proof that he’s hit Aussie treasure status).

Volk is a man of the people. What you see is what you get, even for those of you who know him better as a UFC Featherweight Champion, inside the walls of The Octagon.

When it comes to opportunities to spend time with the fans, Volk will always live up to the name he’s been given as the man of the people.

“Can you talk about yourself being a man of the people?” Volkanovski joked in a one-on-one chat with SPORTbible Australia.

“I feel like I like to give back whenever I can.

“With this situation, I’ve partnered up with Tyro and I get to give back to the people with THEIR [Tyro’s] money.

“I’ll try get them to keep giving a bit more to the bar tab.”

Volk is just months out from his featherweight title bout against Diego Lopes, which is no doubt playing on the Aussie’s mind less than two months out.

When asked if he must go through a transition from the wholesome bar tab shouter to a ruthless fighting machine, Volk kept it humble as we’ve come to expect.

Volkanovski was last in The Octagon February 2024.

“It’s just a job to me.

“If you’re committed to anything in life whether it’s business or any other sport, you commit and you do what you need to do to reach your goals.

“That same person you see that’s doing all the Cooking With Volk, that’s interacting with all the people, that’s the same guy that’s walking to The Octagon.

“It isn’t until I get in there when I’m like ‘oh alright, this is business’.

“I may not be shaking hands for the next fifteen minutes, but I’ll definitely be shaking your hand after.”

Small businesses across NSW still have a chance to win one of two $10,000 Tyro Big Buyouts later this year, with full details available at tyro.com.au/buyout.