Volkanovski chokes out 6-foot-8 Eagles lineman Mailata in cross-sport challenge

Two-time UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski submitted Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Jordan Mailata in a cross-sport challenge pitting the Australian MMA veteran against one of the NFL’s most imposing figures. Mailata, a Super Bowl winner who stands at 6-foot-8, presented a size mismatch unlike anything Volkanovski typically encounters inside the octagon.

The pair worked through a series of unconventional tests, opening with a punching-power machine before Mailata volunteered to absorb body shots from the UFC champion. Despite the significant weight and height advantage, Volkanovski managed to take Mailata off his feet and eventually locked in a choke to complete the submission.

The size difference was not entirely one-sided. Mailata demonstrated his raw strength by lifting Volkanovski clean off the ground at one point, underlining just how physically mismatched the two athletes are by conventional measures.

The final segment leaned into Mailata’s NFL expertise, tasking the lineman with using his blocking skills to protect a dummy from Volkanovski. Even in that scenario, the UFC champion found a way through, completing a clean sweep of the challenges.

Mailata was a willing and good-humoured participant throughout, though he admitted on more than one occasion to questioning his own decision to take part. The encounter offered a rare and entertaining look at how elite combat sports technique can overcome a dramatic physical disadvantage — and gave Volkanovski a very different kind of opponent to add to his résumé.