On The Up: Kasib Murdoch on teaming up with Alexander Volkanovski and Road To UFC opportunity

Kasib Murdoch (right) will compete for a UFC contract on Road To UFC this year. Photo / TVNZ

Kasib Murdoch is not too proud to admit he’s been stealing Alexander Volkanovski’s moves for years.

One of the world’s best mixed martial artists and with a similar build to Murdoch, Volkanavski’s skillset is one the young Dunedin MMA athlete has taken inspiration from.

A former amateur world champion and youth Olympics boxer, Murdoch will now look to join Volkanovski on the UFC roster as he competes in the Road To UFC series in 2026.

And while they say you shouldn’t meet your heroes, Volkanovski has proven an exception to that rule for Murdoch, who is now based in New South Wales, training alongside Volkanovski and head coach Joe Lopez at Freestyle MMA.

“I first just came over to train pretty much because of Volk really. I always looked up to Volk. I thought he was probably the best fighter in the world and he was only a weight class apart from me and then a very similar build, so I kind of was stealing his moves before I even came over and trained here anyway,” Murdoch tells the Herald.

“Joe and Volk both helped me out. That also made the move over pretty easy. Like, they both just helped me out outside of training and fighting as well ... I ended up getting a job and making it work over here, so yeah, it’s been awesome.”

The 24-year-old will compete in the bantamweight division bracket, where he will need to win three fights to earn his place on the UFC roster. Road To UFC is a pathway for athletes from the Asia-Pacific region to earn UFC contracts, with fellow Kiwi Lawrence Lui winning last season’s bantamweight competition.

Murdoch will begin his quest for a UFC contract in Macau in late May, taking on undefeated Japanese fighter Yunosuke Minami (6-0).

Murdoch is 7-0 as a professional, and will be a familiar face to some after he appeared in the TVNZ series Relentless in 2024.

Having been based in Australia for the past couple of years, Murdoch said the opportunity to compete on Road To UFC came in line with the goals he had set himself.

“It just felt like it was a long time coming to be honest. I’ve been working towards the UFC for a while now and now this opportunity’s just getting me that much closer. I can see the finish line,” Murdoch said.

“I’d made a goal before I left New Zealand. I said I wanted to be in the UFC by 2027. It’s kind of just a number I threw out there to be honest ... I have a video somewhere on my phone of me saying it.

“That was just a number I was hoping for, then obviously move things kind of moved pretty fast ... now, I probably fight three times this year then I’ll be in the UFC to fight next year, so it lines up pretty well.”

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.