Highly ranked Australian UFC featherweight fighter Alexander Volkanovski has established Auckland's City Kickboxing as his second home.
The 30-year-old has linked up with City Kickboxing once again, as he prepares for his next bout at UFC 237 in Rio against former UFC champion Jose Aldo.
Volkanovski says the training regime and people at Auckland's City Kickboxing gym is what keeps bringing him back to New Zealand shores.
"It's unreal, we get along, there is good banter, there's good laughs but at the same time they train really hard," said Volkanovski.
"I like that as much as it sucks at the time, it gets me really fit.
"Obviously, there is a lot of talent here as well and we are really starting to show the world that we have got good talent this side of the world."
The Auckland gym possesses some of the top mixed martial arts fighters in New Zealand and the world, with the likes of Israel Adesanya, Dan Hooker, Kai Kara France and Shane Young.
The Aussie featherweight predicts he will get a title shot after taking down one of the best in the sport.
Volkanovski's striking and wrestling coach Frank Hickman says the gym has some of the world’s best strikers in the MMA game right now.
"This gym has some of the most high-level guys around. But for me to come in and work with them too is a blessing for me," said Hickman.
"This gym has tremendous talent."
Volkanovski takes on Aldo on May 11 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Aussie fighter is undefeated in the UFC and has only one loss on his MMA resume.
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