Johnny Walker Volunteers for UFC 334 Title Fight on Seven Days' Notice

One night after knocking out Waldo Cortes-Acosta in Las Vegas, Johnny Walker says he is ready to fly to New York and fight for the heavyweight title at UFC 334 — and he has already named the opponent he wants next.

Johnny Walker is not waiting around. One day after knocking out Waldo Cortes-Acosta at UFC Vegas 124, the Brazilian heavyweight told MMA Fighting he is ready to fight for the UFC title next weekend — on seven days' notice.

Walker stopped Cortes-Acosta in the third round on Saturday night at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas. The win moved his record to 24-10 with one no contest, and it was his second straight knockout since moving up to heavyweight earlier this year, after a first-round finish of Mick Parkin in his divisional debut at UFC 332 in October.

The offer is aimed at UFC 334, which takes place on Saturday, November 14, at Madison Square Garden in New York. Ciryl Gane defends his heavyweight title against Josh Hokit in the main event.

"If they need someone to step in, I'm here," Walker said. "If it's for the title, I'll do something crazy and fight anyway."

Walker said he came through Saturday's fight without serious injury, though he admitted he took damage. "My face is just a little swollen because I ate a lot of punches, right?" he said. He would still need medical clearance from the UFC before competing again on such short notice.

The UFC has not announced whether Walker — or any other fighter — is serving as the official backup for the UFC 334 main event.

Saturday's win moved Walker up four places in the latest UFC rankings, to No. 8 at heavyweight. Cortes-Acosta dropped four places to No. 12. Walker's brother Valter sits at No. 11.

Walker also has a clear idea of what he wants if the New York call does not come. He said he would like to face Hokit next if the American loses the title fight on Saturday — and that he would prefer Gane to keep the belt, so the Hokit fight is there for him. If neither happens, he plans to take the holidays off and return around February or March.

There are two fights Walker has ruled out. He said he will not fight his training partner Alexander Volkov, and he will never fight his half-brother Valter inside the octagon. Valter, himself a ranked heavyweight with a 16-1 record, has other ideas about his brother's future — after Saturday's win he wrote on X that Johnny will be champion next year.

"I say it and I'll say it again. My brother is going to be champion next year and will defend the title against anyone," Valter wrote.

Walker took the Cortes-Acosta fight on short notice, after the original main event between Gabriel Bonfim and Sean Brady fell through. He became the first fighter to finish Cortes-Acosta in MMA. Now he is offering to do it again, one week later, in New York, for the title.