The world of mixed martial arts has again turned its attention overseas in anticipation of the clash between Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway. On Saturday night in Abu Dhabi, the featherweight belt will be on the line between two of the “baddest” fighters in the world in UFC 308.
Nicknamed “El Matador,” Topuria, is the current UFC featherweight champion of the world, and is looking to defend his belt against Holloway, the former featherweight champ who goes by the nickname “Blessed.”
Topuria earned his belt earlier this year after defeating Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski, another former dominant featherweight champion, and the only man to dethrone Holloway in that weight class.
Topuria has quickly made a name for himself in MMA, using his unparalleled confidence to become a household superstar. His remarks about being “the best” appear to be far from just words, as his win against Volkanovski was made undeniable, posting a knockout win in only the second round.
The pre-fight press conference this week gave Topuria another stage to exude this confidence, claiming he will only need one round to knock out Holloway. This came as a shock to fans across the sport — and on social media — as no man in UFC history has been able to get Holloway off of his feet. But Topuria is well aware of that … and accepts the challenge.
“It’s going to be exactly the same, I’m going to take his lights out in the first round,” Topuria said. “Last time, it was the second round but, in this case, it will be a little different I will do it in the first round.”
Topuria’s manager, Jose Diaz, who is based in Miami, backed up his client’s claims this week, telling Caplin News explicitly that “this has been his best weight cut ever. Make sure you’re watching the first ten seconds.”
While Topuria has an impressive skill-set with a multitude of wins to support his predictions, Holloway is no easy fight and could be the toughest test Topuria has faced in the UFC.

Holloway has built an incredible resume, currently holding the circuit’s BMF belt and having an impressive title run of five title defenses at featherweight. The ongoing storyline of the division, in fact, is that even after losing the belt to Volkanovski, no new contender can get through him for a title shot. Holloway has a history of absolutely demolishing any featherweight — besides Volkanovski — who is put in front of him, forcing the two champions to run it back a total of three times.
But Topuria and Holloway is a match that fight fans might say is sent from the “MMA Gods” themselves. Both are electric strikers and debatably the “best boxers in the UFC baby,” as Holloway has said. In his last fight against Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje, in fact, Holloway shocked the world with a last-second knockout after famously pointing at the ground, demanding they leave it all in the octagon. Holloway is known for this bold act and Topuria has made it clear that he will not shy away from the showdown, or the attention.
“When I point to the center of the octagon, he’s not going to come because he is not the real BMF Champion,” Topuria said. “He’s just a fake BMF, he is going to see when I point to the center of the Octagon who’s the real one.”
When Holloway was asked if he’d be the one pointing on Saturday, he simply told reporters, “just tune in.”
With a main event that has stolen the headlines, the co-main follows suit with a lineup of two middleweights, Robert “The Reaper” Whittaker and Khamzat “Borz” Chimaev. A fight previously cancelled back in June due to an illness on Chimaev’s end, this fight also comes with high expectations. Similar to Topuria and Holloway, an undefeated Chimaev will take on one of the top contenders at middleweight, who lost his belt to Israel “The Last Stylebender” Adesanya and has not regained it since. While the middleweight title is not on the line Saturday, the winner of this bout looks to be the next opponent for the newly crowned champion, Dricus Du Plessis.
The remainder of the card — which includes UFC legend Rafael Dos Anjos taking on Geoff Neal in an anticipated welterweight matchup, as well as undefeated Shara Magamedov facing Armen Petrosyan at middleweight — will air during odd hours here in the United States. Due to the fight location, early preliminary bouts will begin at 10 a.m. ET, preliminary fights open at 12 p.m. ET, and the main card will kick off at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN+ Pay Per View.