Ilia Topuria sends scary warning to Max Holloway advising him against trying to stand and bang during their UFC 308 fight… 'Use a helmet'
22/08/2024 12:06
On October 26, Ilia Topuria will make the first defense of his featherweight title when he takes on BMF champion Max Holloway in a highly anticipated grudge match at UFC 308.
After emphatically knocking out Alexander Volkanovski in round two of their UFC 298 main event back in February, Ilia Topuria instantly became a star, maintaining his undefeated record and being the only UFC champion to be still undefeated.
‘El Matador’ knew his first title defense was likely to come against the former king of the division, Max Holloway, but after ‘Blessed’ stole the headlines at UFC 300, that was guaranteed.
Ilia Topuria warns Max Holloway of trying to stand and bang with him
During his fights, Holloway has become notorious for calling his opponents to the center of the Octagon and pointing at the ground, making them engage in a wild stand-and-bang exchange.
The 32-year-old first did it against Ricardo Lamas back in 2016, and he did so again against Justin Gaethje at UFC 300, knocking him out with just one second left of the fight after initiating the exchange.
The 27-year-old champion has warned Holloway against doing his patented gesture during their UFC 308 main event, advising that if he is going to do so, he needs to wear a helmet.
“If someone really wants to make money, they have to put that I’m gonna knock him out in the first or second round. If he’s gonna bring the same energy he brings in the last 10 seconds of every round like when he (points at the ground), I’m gonna knock him out in the first round… I recommend him to use a helmet. Maybe I’m gonna point to the ground,” Topuria told MMAJunkie.
A lot of fellow professional fighters have been making their early picks and the majority of them believe Holloway’s experience and volume will pay dividends in this fight, predicting that he will win back his 145lb title.
“They don’t know anything, I’m telling you, they’re all going to be so surprised when I’m gonna knock him out but man, when I see those kinds of videos, people giving their opinions and saying that Max is gonna knock me out or he’s gonna win, I just realize that they don’t know anything about the sport,” Topuria claimed.
Ilia Topuria confirms the BMF title won’t be on the line at UFC 308
Ahead of this incredible fight getting booked, there were initially a few roadblocks that had to be overcome for it to finally be official.
One of which was that ‘El Matador’ was adamant he would only fight ‘Blessed’ if he was putting up his BMF title too.
Despite that, it was never likely that the UFC would have Holloway put up his title, as it takes away from future opportunity of him defending that belt, regardless of the UFC 308 result.
Topuria has now confirmed that the BMF title won’t be on the line.
“No, the BMF title is not gonna be on the line and to be honest, I don’t care, you know. They made that decision and at the end of the day when I beat him he can stay as a BMF or whatever they wanna call him,” Topuria revealed.
