UFC 333 Fight Week: What Fans Are Watching, Posting and Arguing About
Event: UFC 333: Volkanovski vs. Evloev — October 24, 2026, Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi
Image credit: UFC.com
Search "UFC" on Google right now and the search page tells the story of the week before you click anything. Two title fights sit at the top. Under them, a row Google calls "What people are saying" — the videos and posts fans are passing around. That row is basically fight week in miniature.
Alexander Volkanovski defends the featherweight title against Movsar Evloev on Saturday in Abu Dhabi. Petr Yan and Merab Dvalishvili run their trilogy for the bantamweight belt in the co-main. [1] But the fights are only half of it. Here is what people have actually been watching and arguing about all week.
The documentary everyone keeps sharing
The video sitting at the top of that Google row is not from the UFC. It is Episode 1 of Anatomy of UFC 333, Will Harris's behind-the-scenes documentary series, and it pulled more than 40,000 views in its first day. Harris follows Evloev's camp in Dubai, rising bantamweight Asaf Chopurov, and heavyweight Rizvan Kuniev as fight week builds. [2]
Episode 2 is already out. Evloev checks in for the biggest fight of his life, sits down with Nina Drama, and crosses paths with the champion himself. [3]
Meanwhile, on Embedded: a horse bit Merab
The UFC's own Embedded series has been its own kind of chaos. Episode 1 has Dvalishvili hosting a team BBQ up in the mountains, Yan signing autographs, Colby Thicknesse taking his blind cat for a walk, and Volkanovski showing up at the Sydney premiere of Street Fighter — "Hollywood Volk," as the UFC put it. [1]
Then Episode 2 topped the headline list for the whole week: Merab Dvalishvili got bit by a horse. [4] Fighters have had strange fight weeks before. Getting bitten by a horse four days before a title fight is a new one. Fans, predictably, have not stopped posting about it.
The talk: one calm champion, one unbothered challenger
The quotes doing the rounds tell you how split people are. Evloev, 20-0 and never finished a UFC run like this before, told reporters he can beat anyone by decision and is not changing his style for anybody. Volkanovski's camp is just as relaxed. Laura Sanko called the champion "superior" and picked him to keep the belt, and plenty of fans agree — his fight IQ is the argument that keeps coming up. [5]
Yan is already looking one step ahead, talking openly about a Sean O'Malley rematch after Saturday. [5] One fight is 1-1 between him and Dvalishvili. The third one settles it.
The picks shows are split, too
The Anik & Florian crew gave both title fights the full treatment this week — the wrestling-versus-anti-wrestling problem Evloev poses, Volkanovski's age and hunger, what changed between the first two Yan-Merab fights, and whether Merab's damaged nose matters. Worth a watch before Saturday. [6]
Where the numbers land
Volkanovski is 28-4 with the belt. Evloev is 20-0 and has never lost a round of momentum in the UFC. Yan and Dvalishvili have beaten each other once each. [1][5] The full stat comparison — striking, grappling, form and our prediction — is in our Volkanovski vs. Evloev head-to-head preview, and the complete card is on the UFC 333 event page.
Saturday night will settle the arguments. Until then, the feed is undefeated.
Sources
1. MMA Junkie — UFC 333 'Embedded,' No. 1: Volkanovski shows his Hollywood side
2. Anatomy of a Fighter — ANATOMY OF UFC 333: Alex Volkanovski vs. Movsar Evloev, Episode 1
3. Anatomy of a Fighter — ANATOMY OF UFC 333: Episode 2
4. MMA Junkie — UFC 333 'Embedded,' No. 3: Fans show up big to meet headliner
5. Headlines of fight week: MMA Junkie (Sanko on Volkanovski), Yahoo Sports (Evloev on decision wins), Heavy (Yan on an O'Malley rematch) — as listed in Google Top Stories, October 21–22, 2026.
6. Anik & Florian Podcast — UFC 333 Preview: Volkanovski vs Evloev, Yan vs Merab 3
Fight data compiled from public statistical sources (ufcstats.com) and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). OctagonStats is an independent database, not affiliated with UFC / TKO Group.