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Jeff Wagenheim, ESPN
Newer followers of mixed martial arts often need a history lesson to fully appreciate why hardcore fans are so pumped about an upcoming fight.
There’s a rivalry going back a decade. A lengthy title reign in peril. A compelling comeback story. A long-standing record on the verge of being shattered.
However, in the case of the UFC 308 main event, the sales pitch for the featherweight championship clash between Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway begins and ends in 2024. One fight apiece — the most recent for each of them — is all we need to know about to be sold on Saturday’s matchup in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (ESPN+ PPV at 2 p.m. ET, prelims on ESPN+ at 10 a.m.).
For Topuria, that one persuasive fight occurred in February, when he snatched away the belt with a knockout that abruptly ended Alexander Volkanovski‘s four-year reign. As for Holloway, his hard sell came two months later, when he authored perhaps the greatest KO in MMA history by sending Justin Gaethje face-first to the canvas with just one second remaining in their fifth round of violence.
That’s all one needs to know to get excited for Topuria vs. Holloway. However, a deeper dive into their pasts reveals that both participants have done much more to stand apart from all others who grace the Octagon. For instance, there are 11 UFC champions, but Topuria (15-0) is the only one who’s undefeated. Holloway (26-7) is the all-time leader among UFC featherweights in practically every statistic that matters — wins (20), finishes (11), KOs (9), significant strikes (2,892) and total strikes (3,096).
Bring it on, fellas.
How does the rest of UFC 308 stack up against the main event? Here’s a ranking of the top attractions.
1. Featherweight championship: Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway
An undefeated champion versus a revitalized legend. What more could fight fans ask for? Even before knocking out Volkanovski, Topuria proved himself to be a lights-out finisher, with eight submissions and five KOs among his 15 wins. But his challenger hasn’t been knocked out in his 33-fight career. Holloway has been finished only once, when he tapped out to a Dustin Poirier triangle armbar in his UFC debut … 12 years ago. Yes, “Blessed” Max has been around for quite a long time and has accomplished a lot. Here’s a chance for him to outdo himself.
2. Middleweight: Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev
Finally, Chimaev’s run of dominance gets a full-sized test. Sure, his most recent victory was against Kamaru Usman, a former UFC welterweight champion. But that bout happened up at middleweight, and Usman was brought in as a replacement opponent just 10 days before fight night.
Now Chimaev is facing another ex-champ, this one a true middleweight — and not just any 185-pounder. Whittaker is a rumbling whirlwind for opponents anyplace a fight goes. If Chimaev can handle all that Whittaker brings, he will have earned the title shot that much of the MMA fanbase has presumed to be his destiny. Having just three fights in the past three years has slowed the roll of the Chimaev hype train, but Saturday could get it chugging again.
3. Light heavyweight: Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakic
I was tempted to rank this one higher than the co-main event because it has clearer stakes, as the UFC has assured Ankalaev of a title shot if he puts on a strong performance here. Can he take that promise to the bank, though?
Ankalaev is unbeaten in his last 12 fights, the second-longest such streak in light heavyweight history (Jon Jones, 19). He had already done enough to warrant first dibs when the last light heavyweight title bout was being booked. But Ankalaev was passed over for Khalil Rountree Jr., whom the UFC knew would not douse the excitement of an Alex Pereira performance with any of those unpleasant takedowns Ankalaev might attempt. Now, the UFC is setting one more obstacle in front of Ankalaev. If he beats Rakic, he’d surely be up next, right?
4, 5, 6 and 7, in any order. The other undefeateds
There’s an unbeaten fighter in the main event (Topuria) and one in the co-main (Chimaev), and while they’ll be the evening’s attention grabbers, they’re far from the only unblemished competitors at UFC 308. Two compete earlier on the main card. Featherweight Lerone Murphy (14-0-1), just five months removed from a dominant performance against Edson Barboza, faces a less-aged test against Dan Ige. And middleweight Shara Magomedov (14-0) takes on Armen Petrosyan. There are two undefeated competitors on the prelims: Men’s bantamweight Farid Basharat (12-0) fights Victor Hugo and light heavyweight Rafael Cerqueira brings an 11-0 record into his UFC debut against Ibo Aslan. Six unbeaten fighters on the card is practically a guarantee of secure-the-seatbelts turbulence ahead.