UFC 308: Max Holloway to provide Ilia Topuria his toughest test yet
Michael Bolton
One of the biggest UFC cards of the year takes place in Abu Dhabi this Saturday as Ilia Topuria makes the first defence of his featherweight title against Max Holloway at UFC 308.
Two of the best boxers in the sport, this will be guaranteed violence from the beginning.
Topuria's rise in the sport has caught the attention of all fans, as he won the title at UFC 298 with a second round knockout over Alexander Volkanovski.
The Spanish fighter's combinations and power makes him a threat to everyone, and at 13-0, has been a puzzle yet to be figured out.
Standing across from him in the octagon on Saturday is former champion and fan favourite in the sport Holloway.
[caption id="attachment_1686382" align="alignnone" width="892"]img Photo: Sofascore.[/caption]
After coming up short against Volkanovski at UFC 276, Holloway is on a three-fight win streak.
He gave fans one of the moments of 2024 with his last second knockout over Justin Gaethje to win the BMF belt at UFC 300.
This fight will be a straight-up striking battle, with the power and combinations of Topuria against the pressure and cardio of Holloway.
Topuria will be determined to be the first fight in over 12 years to finish Holloway, and the first to knock him out. However, if the fight goes to the later rounds, Holloway has the experience and knowledge to come up with big moments as the fight goes on.
Return of Chimaev
In the co-main at UFC 308, Robert Whittaker takes on Khamzat Chimaev in the middleweight division.
A fight originally scheduled for June in Saudi Arabia but an injury to Chimaev ruled him out, with Whittaker finishing Ikram Aliskerov in the first round.
For Chimaev, after such a promising start to the UFC, injuries and illness have seen long periods of inactivity. His last fight was a majority decision win over Kamaru Usman.
His wrestling and pressure is something seen by very few fighters in the sport, and he has several first round finishes. Despite his recent struggles, he is still undefeated, and it would be no surprise to see him win on Saturday.
However, he will face his toughest challenge yet in former champion Whittaker, who never backs down from a challenge.
After losing the belt in 2019 to Israel Adesanya, Whittaker faced the toughest fights possible, with wins over the likes of Jared Cannonier, Marvin Vettori and Paulo Costa.
While defeat against Dricus Du Plessis slowed down his path back to a title shot, a win over Chimaev would leave him in an undeniable position.
If Whittaker can use his takedown defence to his advantage and keep the fight on the feet where he has the advantage, it could become a fascinating battle.
Title-eliminator
In the light-heavyweight division, Magomed Ankalaev could finally secure a title shot against Alex Pereira when he takes on Alexsander Rakic.
Ankalaev has not lost since 2018, and is one of the most well-rounded fighters at 205 pounds. However, he is still waiting for that performance to make him the undeniable contender to face Pereira.
His last title fight was when it was vacant at UFC 282, but it ended in a split-draw against Jan Blachowicz.
Ankalaev mixes in his striking with the threat of takedowns to keep his opponents guessing, and will hope to do the same with Rakic.
While he comes into the fight on a two-fight losing streak, a win for Rakic would shake up the division.
Elsewhere on the card, English fighter Lerone Murphy faces Dan Ige in the featherweight division.
Murphy is undefeated with a 14-0-1 record, and had his biggest win in his career over Edson Barboza back in May. A win over Ige could set him up for a top-10 fight in 2025.
Ige is coming off a defeat to Diego Lopes at UFC 303, as he stepped in on a couple of hours notice. If Ige, gets the chance, his power can cause anyone trouble.
Elsewhere at UFC 308, the exciting Shara Magomedov will be hoping for his fourth straight win in the UFC when he opens the main card up aagainst Armen Petrosyan.