Ilia Topuria knocks out Max Holloway | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Ilia Topuria may have just locked up the Fighter of the Year.
On Saturday night in Abu Dhabi, Topuria became the first man to knock out Max Holloway, finishing him with punches in the third round of the UFC 308 main event. Following Saturday’s pay-per-view event, MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck and Jed Meshew react to Topuria’s astonishing performance and where this puts him not only in the Fighter of the Year conversation, but in the pound-for-pound mix.
On top of that, MMA Fighting discusses Khamzat Chimaev breaking Robert Whittaker’s jaw with a brutal submission and whether that allows him to leapfrog Sean Strickland for a middleweight title shot, Magomed Ankalaev’s workmanlike win over Aleksandar Rakic, the judging controversies that riddled the rest of the card, and much more.
Watch the UFC 308 post-fight show above, or an audio-only version of the show can also be streamed below and on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever else you get your pods.
Dana White promises that Francis Ngannou is the last thing on his mind.
Despite not working together for nearly two years, the UFC CEO and the former heavyweight champion rarely escape questions about each other. The latest fracas started after White revealed that he wanted to cut Ngannou after he suffered back-to-back losses in the UFC in 2018.
That earned a response from Ngannou, who called his former boss a “bully” and added that White is probably “praying for my downfall” while also claiming that the UFC actually owes money that was promised to him after wins over Ciryl Gane and Stipe Miocic.
“When have you ever heard a story in all the years we’ve been in business, even when it was upside down, where we owed somebody money? Never happened,” White said about Ngannou’s claims at the UFC 308 post-fight press conference. “So he’s full of shit there.
“Then, I lost? I didn’t lose anything. I was done with Francis after the [Derrick Lewis fight]. Actually, he owes me money because we had to watch that fight with him and ‘The Black Beast.’ He should actually pay me back for that fight and all of you. Me praying [for his downfall] — trust me, I don’t think about Francis that much. You guys ask me the question about the PFL and I responded. Other than that, the only one who’s praying for his demise is probably the PFL because they signed a shitty contract with a guy that doesn’t deliver any numbers and ticket sales or pay-per-views. They’ve got to keep paying this guy for however long and good for him. Not good for them.”
As much as White maintained that he absolutely wanted to release Ngannou from the UFC roster, there’s no denying that he bounced back from those losses and eventually won the heavyweight title. Ngannou’s run with the UFC ended after six straight wins including victories over four ex-champions.
But White says the issues he had with Ngannou had nothing to do with his talent as a fighter but rather personal problems between them that spiraled out of control. While he didn’t reveal the nature of their fallout, White explained that his relationship with Ngannou was never the same again.
“Someday, I’ll tell you the story. I was all about Francis in the beginning and then I found out who Francis was,” White said. “I told the two guys who asked me not to cut Francis when somebody shows you who they are, believe them. Believe me, I have no sleepless nights over Francis leaving.
“I didn’t like Francis as a person. It wasn’t a guy I wanted to do business with. My boys were telling me he’s misunderstood. I told them when somebody shows you who they are, believe them. It wasn’t about him becoming heavyweight champion of the world. Francis isn’t a good guy. He plays the good guy. ‘I don’t understand the language’ so he seems like he’s a nice guy. He’s not, and he’s just not a guy I wanted to be in business with, period. End of story. Whether he became the champion or not.”
Ngannou obviously left in free agency before booking a pair of boxing matches against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua before finally making his PFL debut with a win over Renan Ferreira.
He remains under contract with the PFL but has also hinted at a potential return to boxing in the future.
No matter where he goes next, White promises there’s no word where he ever gets back in business with Ngannou again.
“We won’t be. We’ll never be in business together,” White said. “You can tell. We don’t like each other. This goes back to before the first Stipe fight. He pulled some shit before the first Stipe fight, and I said I’m done with this guy and then Stipe beat the shit out of him. Great night. We never had a relationship after that.”
It’s safe to say that White won’t be bending over backwards to present Ngannou with any opportunities and that includes a potential fight against UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
While that’s a matchup that White desperately wanted to see once upon a time, that’s no longer and option and if Jones is going to fight anybody after he faces Miocic at UFC 309, it certainly won’t be Ngannou.
“He didn’t want that fight,” White said about Ngannou facing Jones. “He could have stayed and took that fight. He didn’t want that fight. Tom Aspinall deserves that fight.”
There’s a good reason why Robert Whittaker tapped out just a split second after Khamzat Chimaev applied a devastating face crank end their fight at UFC 308.
Following the pay-per-view broadcast, Daniel Cormier showed off a gruesome photo that Whittaker sent him showing off the damage done from Chimaev’s jaw-crushing submission.
“Khamzat Chimaev broke his tooth,” Cormier said about the photo. “Literally dislocated his jaw in a matter of two seconds. It was unbelievable.”
(Warning: UFC 308 photo below is pretty graphic.)
Chimaev’s finish is the first time that Whittaker has ever been submitted in the UFC.
It was a dominant performance from start to finish as Chimaev landed a takedown just seconds into the opening round and he never gave Whittaker a second to breathe. Chimaev was dominant but not impatient as he continued to ensure he maintained control over Whittaker as he did his best to scramble free and get back to his feet.
Again and again, Chimaev kept pulling him back down to the ground while looking to advance his position.
When he finally had full control on Whittaker’s back, Chimaev quickly secured his arms around the former champion’s face to lock up the submission. Chimaev tightened his grip and Whittaker immediately tapped out.
Whittaker apparently told Chimaev in the cage that he suffered a dislocated jaw but it wasn’t until after he got backstage that the full damage was revealed. Obviously, Whittaker will be headed for oral surgery thanks to the nasty submission applied by Chimaev.
The win moved Chiamev to 14-0 in his career and 8-0 in the UFC as he takes another step towards a potential title fight in the middleweight division.
Magomed Ankalaev continued his unbeaten streak with a decision win over Aleksandar Rakic at UFC 308 and now he’s hoping he finally got Alex Pereira’s attention.
Over three rounds, Ankalaev showed he was the superior striker as he continued chipping away at Rakic and looking to set up a potential fight finishing sequence. The knockout never came but Ankalaev kept Rakic on his backfoot for the entire fight as he cruised to victory with all three judges scoring the fight 29-28 in his favor.
“I kept running after him but it was really hard to catch him,” Ankalaev said about his performance. “I don’t want to say anything bad about him but I didn’t understand his striking at all. Very uncomfortable opponent for me.”
The massive light heavyweights exchanged some huge, heavy kicks early with both trying to find an opening to do maximum damage. Ankalaev was marching forward and closing the distance on the taller fighter but Rakic was doing a good job keeping him honest with some well-timed straight punches and mixing in more of those long, rangy kicks.
While Rakic kept tossing out a head kick, Ankalaev displayed good hand speed and power with his boxing as he continued leading the dance. Ankaleav continued stabbing at Rakic with a variety of punches including a stiff shot to the body that definitely got his opponent’s attention.
Ankalaev was really starting to mix up his punches, tossing out a straight right and the following with a slick left uppercut behind it. As time passed, Rakic was stuck playing defense with Ankalaev really finding his rhythm on the feet.
With less than a minute remaining in the second round, Ankalaev mashed Rakic’s face with a nasty straight left down the middle. Rakic kept thrown back at him but Ankalaev was really beginning to control the action with his superior striking.
Ankalaev stayed on the gas moving forward and unleashing more and more of those straight left hands that just kept finding a home on Rakic’s chin. As time ticked away to the final horn, Ankalaev continued to punish Rakic on the inside with heavy punches and knees as he did more than enough to ensure that he would leave Abu Dhabi with the win.
Following his latest performance to stay unbeaten for 13 consecutive fights, Ankalaev wasted no time turning his attention to the UFC light heavyweight champion with hopes that a title shot is next in 2025.
“I think I’ve done everything to deserve the next title shot,” Ankalaev said. “I’d like to tell Alex, stop running away from me. Alex, stop running away from me.”
Ibo Aslan preached patience heading into his fight at UFC 308 but sometimes strategy goes out the window and it results in a stunning 51-second standing knockout.
The Turkish powerhouse wasted no time coming after undefeated prospect Raffael Cerqueira as soon as the fight got started. Aslan connected with a huge left hook early in the opening round and replays showed Cerqueira’s eyes just rolling back in his head as he shifted into survival mode against the cage.
Aslan continued to unload rapid-fire punches with Cerqueira doing very little to defend himself outside of covering up and hoping he didn’t get flattened on the canvas. As the barrage continued, Cerqueira just kept eating punches and referee Marc Goddard had no choice but to stop the fight.
IBO ASLAN WITH THE QUICK FINISH #UFC308 pic.twitter.com/d3jMguofHZ
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 26, 2024
The 51-second finish moved Aslan to 2-0 in his UFC career with a pair of knockouts already on his resume.
“After this left hook, I watch him in the eyes,” Aslan said about his knockout win. “This is just the beginning of the end. I just crashed. I have Turkish power in my hands. If I touch somebody, he’s already done.”
Since arriving from The Contender Series, Aslan appeared to be a name to watch but he’s looked very impressive in his short time spent in the octagon thus far.
He’s now riding a five-fight win streak overall and his UFC debut already allowed him to avenge the only loss of his career when he put away Anton Turkalj back in March.
“I am coming for all of you,” Aslan shouted when he was asked who he wanted next.
Israel Adesanya will be paying close attention to the UFC 308 co-main event between fellow middleweights Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev.
Whittaker and Chimaev will battle for a scheduled five rounds this Saturday in Abu Dhabi. Having faced Whittaker twice, Adesanya is quite familiar with what “The Reaper” brings to the table. But Chimaev’s wrestling is a big point of contention for the former champion, especially early.
“I don’t think Rob’s going to run through Khamzat,” Adesanya said on his YouTube channel. “Finally, we get to see [Chimaev] fight a legit middleweight, one of the top middleweights, one of the greatest middleweights of all time.
“I think Khamzat’s going to attack him with the wrestling so Rob’s going to have to scramble for his life initially, weather the storm, and I think it’s going to be a wrestling-based attack. I think he’s going to try and submit Rob. I don’t think he’s going to stand with Rob. Yeah, [Chimaev has a chance striking], but I don’t think it’s a great chance on the feet with Rob because Rob will just snipe him. Rob will just move in and out, in and out, and then blitz.
“I think while Rob is blitzing, Khamzat will take him down. … I think Khamzat, if he’s going to win, he’s going to have to do it in the first or second round and catch Rob early with a submission. I don’t see him dropping Rob. He’s got good standup, also, he’s tough on the feet like the fight with Gilbert Burns and Kamaru [Usman]. You can tell, he’s down to throw.”
With Dana White saying Sean Strickland is likely next for 185-pound champ Dricus du Plessis, the stakes are still extremely high for both Whittaker and Chimaev, with the winner likely in the on-deck circle for a chance to capture the middleweight crown.
Regardless of who comes out victorious, Adesanya is confident the judges will not be needed. In the end, it comes down to if Whittaker can get the fight extended towards the championship rounds — which “The Last Stylebender” predicts will happen.
“Rob, just weather the storm in rounds one and two, and then three, four, five, that’s all Rob,” Adesanya said. “But again, Rob has fought a guy like Romero, twice. Romero was hitting him with these f*cking crazy takedowns, trying to get him, and Rob was like, ‘Nah, I’m standing up.’ So Rob knows his shit on the ground.
“How long will he be able to keep Khamzat off of him, and will he be able to stop Khamzat’s onslaught of takedowns and grappling exchanges in the first two rounds? I’d say, early on, Khamzat will submit him if he’s going to win, and then later on, Rob will just TKO him in round three, four, or five. I don’t know which round, but one of them.
“But which one do I want to go with? I think Rob is just a guy not to be f*cked with. I mean, look at his last fight so hopefully people remember who he is now. So I think Rob will do it again — maybe not as early, definitely not as early. … I think he’ll catch him later on, but he’s got to weather the storm. He has to survive until he can’t. I’m going to go Rob on this one with a late finish.”
Photo by Hans Gutknecht/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images
Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway are set to cap off UFC 308 with a generational clash for the UFC featherweight championship.
Topuria and Holloway will headline the promotion’s pay-per-view return to Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi this Saturday. It will be featherweight champion vs. BMF champion, as Topuria defends for the first time against Holloway, a former 145-pound titleholder.
Check out the cold open for UFC 308, narrated by Ron Perlman.
Topuria vs Holloway is LIVE SATURDAY on @ESPNPlus PPV at 2pmET!@VisitAbuDhabi | @InAbuDhabi | #InAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/BgM1oKVpVf
— danawhite (@danawhite) October 24, 2024
Topuria captured the title with a sensational knockout of Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 in February to remain undefeated. Holloway delivered one of the most memorable moments in UFC history at April’s UFC 300 event, knocking out Justin Gaethje in the final second of their BMF title fight.
In the co-main event, former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker looks to state his case for a title shot as he faces the undefeated Khamzat Chimaev in a five-round matchup.
A huge part of the reason why Max Holloway took a fight against Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 was knowing that a win would give him any number of options for his career.
He not only won but Holloway pulled off one of the greatest finishes in UFC history when he pointed to the ground late in the fifth round and invited Gaethje to throw down with him. With one second remaining on the clock, Holloway delivered a stunning knockout that sent Gaethje face first to the canvas as the crowd at T-Mobile Arena erupted with applause.
That fight crowned Holloway as the “BMF” champion but he ultimately decided that his next move was returning to featherweight where he challenges Ilia Topuria for the title in the UFC 308 main event. While the title fight is all that matters to him right now, Holloway knows a win on Saturday puts him right back in that same advantageous position and he promises he hasn’t forgotten about his other belt.
“For sure. I think so for sure,” Holloway said about defending the ‘BMF’ title. “At the end of the day in this sport, the thing that you want is options. I go out there, I get my hand raised. What is the saying? The world is my oyster. I can’t wait for it.”
Assuming he gets through Topuria and becomes a two-time featherweight champion, Holloway understands that there’s going to be plenty of work to do in that division as well.
Winning the title potentially lines up Holloway for a fourth fight against Alexander Volkanovski after suffering three past losses to him. Volkanovski was promised a shot at the belt in his return to action following a knockout loss to Topuria back in February.
Of course, Holloway hasn’t forgotten about the other name in the hat right now and that belongs to Diego Lopes, who is actually serving as the backup fighter for the UFC 308 main event. Whether it’s Volkanovski or Lopes next, Holloway can’t wait for those kinds of challenges as champion.
“He’s an animal,” Holloway said about Lopes. “The way he’s been fighting. Taking fights on short notice. Showing up in those short notice fights and he’s a beast. When I saw that he was the backup, I was kind of blown away for a little bit because of all the talk that Alex was saying that he’s the next guy up in line and this and that and then also, it makes sense that Alex ain’t no backup fighter. They told him he’d get the next title fight.
“It’s just weird that they’re telling Alex he has the next title fight and then to have another guy as the backup. But I guess so. If you look at the heavyweight division, anything can happen in the world. At the end of the day, I think Diego Lopes is a promising upcoming star. He’s not even upcoming anymore. He’s doing what he’s doing. It’s cool. Congrats to him having that moment.”
Before he can think about defending his “BMF” title or really paying attention to who’s next at featherweight, Holloway first has to reclaim that 145-pound title on Saturday.
While he can’t totally encapsulate the feeling of winning at UFC 308 given that it hasn’t happened yet, Holloway has a good idea at just how much another title run would mean to him.
“It’s going to be amazing,” Holloway said. “With all the naysayers, with all the doubters, with all the fanbase that he’s bringing in, the support that he has. It’s going to be great. I can’t wait to go out there and prove to the world.
“To be the best you’ve got to beat the best and the best is ‘Blessed.’ On Oct. 26, I get to show the world again.”
The UFC 308 live stream online will feature all the early action on the Topuria vs. Holloway fight card from the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Saturday night.
The UFC 308 live stream online will kick off at 10 a.m. ET above. There will be eight fights on this portion of the card, and those fights are listed below.
Geoff Neal vs. Rafael dos Anjos
Mateusz Rebecki vs. Myktybek Orolbai
Abus Magomedov vs. Brunno Ferreira
Kennedy Nzechukwu vs. Chris Barnett
Farid Basharat vs. Victor Hugo
Ismail Naurdiev vs. Bruno Silva
Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Carlos Leal
Ibo Aslan vs. Raffael Cerqueira
After this portion of the card is over, the five-fight main card, headlined by UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria defending his title against former UFC champion Max Holloway in the main event, will be on ESPN+ pay-per-view starting at 2 p.m. ET. Former UFC champion Robert Whittaker will clash with Khamzat Chimaev in the co-main event.
Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway will clash in the UFC 308 main event Saturday. | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
The UFC 308 start time, fight card, and TV schedule for the Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway event at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Saturday is below.
The fight card is broken into two different parts and airs on multiple mediums. This post helps explain which fights are airing where and at which times.
The event kicks off with an eight-fight preliminary card 10 a.m. ET on ESPN+ and YouTube, headlined by a welterweight bout between Geoff Neal and Rafael dos Anjos.
Geoff Neal vs. Rafael dos Anjos
Mateusz Rebecki vs. Myktybek Orolbai
Abus Magomedov vs. Brunno Ferreira
Kennedy Nzechukwu vs. Chris Barnett
Farid Basharat vs. Victor Hugo
Ismail Naurdiev vs. Bruno Silva
Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Carlos Leal
Ibo Aslan vs. Raffael Cerqueira
The card then heads to ESPN+ pay-per-view at 2 p.m. ET. A featherweight contest between UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria and former UFC champion Max Holloway will headline this portion of the card.
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