Tag: Max Holloway

UFC 308: Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway Press Conference Highlights & Faceoffs

We’re deep into UFC 308 fight week, meaning it was recently time for the fighters set to be in action on October 26 to take to the stage and answer some questions. The MMA leader’s latest numbered event takes place at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, where the main attraction will […]

Continue Reading UFC 308: Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway Press Conference Highlights & Faceoffs at MMA News.

We’re deep into UFC 308 fight week, meaning it was recently time for the fighters set to be in action on October 26 to take to the stage and answer some questions.

The MMA leader’s latest numbered event takes place at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, where the main attraction will see UFC Featherweight Champion Ilia Topuria put his belt on the line against Max Holloway.

Setting the stage for the UFC 308 headliners will be crucial five-round contest at 185 pounds, with former kingpin Robert Whittaker looking to blemish the thus-far perfect professional record of Khamzat Chimaev.

Also on pay-per-view will be top light heavyweight contender Magomed Ankalaev, who will look to finally secure a shot at Alex Pereira by getting the better of Aleksandar Raki?. That’s in addition to rising featherweight Lerone Murphy, who returns following a main event win over Edson Barboza to do battle with Dan Ige.

The UFC 308 main card will open with Shara Magomedov making his third walk to the Octagon in quick succession. “Bullet” will look to continue his winning start to life in the UFC against a fellow kickboxing specialist in Armen Petrosyan.

As is customary during major fight weeks, the athletes took to the stage on Thursday for the pre-fight press conference.

Check out a full replay of the presser below via the UFC’s official YouTube channel, followed by all the highlights and faceoffs.

UFC 308 Press Conference Highlights

UFC 308 Press Conference Faceoffs

Continue Reading UFC 308: Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway Press Conference Highlights & Faceoffs at MMA News.

VIDEO: Topuria, Holloway, Chimaev & More Complete Open Workouts Ahead Of UFC 308

The top stars set to be in action at UFC 308 this weekend took to the stage on Wednesday for the open workouts. Mixed martial arts’ leading promotion is back in Abu Dhabi for the second time this year, returning to the Middle East two months on from the Cory Sandhagen vs. Umar Nurmagomedov-headlined UFC […]

Continue Reading VIDEO: Topuria, Holloway, Chimaev & More Complete Open Workouts Ahead Of UFC 308 at MMA News.

The top stars set to be in action at UFC 308 this weekend took to the stage on Wednesday for the open workouts.

Mixed martial arts’ leading promotion is back in Abu Dhabi for the second time this year, returning to the Middle East two months on from the Cory Sandhagen vs. Umar Nurmagomedov-headlined UFC Fight Night event in August.

Unlike that card, this occasion sees gold on the line. Championship stakes on Oct. 26 will come at featherweight, with reigning kingpin Ilia Topuria putting his belt on the line for the first time against legendary fan favorite Max Holloway.

Before “El Matador” looks to cement his grip on the 145-pound crown, former middleweight champ Robert Whittaker will look to bring himself back into a title matchup by blemishing the perfect record of Khamzat Chimaev.

Elsewhere on the main card, Magomed Ankalaev and Aleksandar Raki? collide for the likely right to challenge Alex Pereira, Dan Ige becomes the latest looking to take Lerone Murphy’s ‘O’, and Shara Magomedov keeps up his high level of activity inside the Octagon.

The event will be available exclusively on ESPN+ pay-per-view on Saturday, October 26, 2024. The main card begins at 2 PM ET, while the preliminary card kicks off at 10 AM ET.

Ahead of it, a number of UFC 308 fighters appeared for the open workouts at the Yas Mall in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi on Wednesday. Check out a highlights package posted by the UFC on X below:

Continue Reading VIDEO: Topuria, Holloway, Chimaev & More Complete Open Workouts Ahead Of UFC 308 at MMA News.

Max Holloway Calls Ilia Topuria a ‘Copycat’ of Conor McGregor Ahead of UFC 308 Showdown

Max Holloway Ilia Topuria a Copycat Conor McGregor UFC 308Max Holloway will soon face Ilia Topuria for the featherweight crown at UFC 308. Ahead of this weekend’s showdown,…

Max Holloway Ilia Topuria a Copycat Conor McGregor UFC 308

Max Holloway will soon face Ilia Topuria for the featherweight crown at UFC 308. Ahead of this weekend’s showdown, ‘Blessed’ has said ‘El Matador’ is trying to copy Conor McGregor.

Max Holloway

Hawaii’s ‘Blessed’ Max Holloway captured the UFC featherweight championship with a series of wins against MMA legend Jose Aldo. He would lose this title over a trilogy against top pound-for-pound athlete Alexander Volkanovski. Alexander ‘The Great’ lost his crown to the Georgia-Spanish fighter Ilia Topuria by way of knockout. Now, on October 26, Holloway looks to recapture his throne.

max holloway ufc 231

Ilia Topuria trying to copy Conor McGregor

After a barrage of trash traded against one another, Holloways claims that Topuria is trying to copy ‘The Notorious’ Conor McGregor. While speaking at a press conference, ‘Blessed’ explained:

“You gotta earn that right [to point down to the canvas], I don’t think [Topuria] deserves that right. You know the guy that he’s copycatting. This guy is a copycat, down to his tattoos, his aura, the way he’s approaching fights. The guy is a copycat, and your best friend’s [Conor McGregor] with the guy he’s following.”

Reddit user Ido-Portal compiled the following image to show the comparison between Ilia Topuria and Conor McGregor.

Ilia Topuria copy Conor McGregor

Discussing Conor McGregor, ‘El Matador’ would be potentially interested in a match but the Irish athlete has not been active. He explained:

“I wanted it before, but right now he seems to be retired. For how long he didn’t fight? For three or four years? Something like that … At this point, he doesn’t deserve to share the octagon with me. I’m the world champion. He was, but right now he’s nobody. He’s not even ranked… Right now, Conor doesn’t represent anything else than drugs and alcohol.” [Ht MMAJunkie]

Similar to McGregor, Topuria is looking to retain his featherweight UFC world title and then jump up to lightweight to become a two-division champion. But before he can look too far into the future, Topuria has a major fight ahead of him in the form of Max Holloway who is just coming off a knockout win against Justin Gaethje.

Ilia Topuria’s Training Partner Says He’s Even More Confident Away From Interviews

Since Ilia Topuria arrived in the UFC, he’s become a somewhat divisive character despite the fact that he backs up what he says inside the Octagon. The current featherweight champion has always carried himself with supreme self confidence. Though it’s clearly a major asset of his, it does lead to some fans reading this as […]

Continue Reading Ilia Topuria’s Training Partner Says He’s Even More Confident Away From Interviews at MMA News.

Since Ilia Topuria arrived in the UFC, he’s become a somewhat divisive character despite the fact that he backs up what he says inside the Octagon. The current featherweight champion has always carried himself with supreme self confidence.

Though it’s clearly a major asset of his, it does lead to some fans reading this as arrogance, especially when he’s going up against long-time fan favorites like Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway. Topuria said multiple times before his fight with Volkanovski that it was already written for him to become the champion and though he respected “The Great”, it was no longer his time to sit at the top of the 145-pound division.

In the lead up to his first title defense against Holloway this weekend at UFC 308, “El Matador” has been his usual confident self, claiming that he will be the first man to knock the former champion out. Some might say that this is Topuria just trying to sell the fight or that he’s playing up his own confidence just because there’s a microphone in front of him.

A training partner of his in Spain says that this is completely the opposite to an act that Topuria puts on for the cameras. In a recent interview with The Scrap, Miguel Navarro gave his insight into the fight as someone who knows the champion well.

Navarro trained with the champ at Climent Club in Alicante but has continued to make the trip to Madrid to train with him now that Topuria has moved. He says that his fellow Spaniard is always extremely self-assured, claiming that if anything, he tones it down for interviews rather than amplifying it.

“Yeah, he’s always like that. That’s not like a role or something. Personal treatment, he’s like that and I think even more than in the interviews, even more. If you know all his people, everyone thinks like him. Everyone doesn’t have like piece of doubt, any piece of doubt.”

Continue Reading Ilia Topuria’s Training Partner Says He’s Even More Confident Away From Interviews at MMA News.

UFC 308 Backup Fighter Diego Lopes Predicts Topuria vs. Holloway

The UFC 308 main event is one of the biggest fights of the year between featherweight champion Ilia Topuria and his first challenger, Max Holloway. As is often the case with a fight of this magnitude, there is a backup fighter on standby in case either man is unable to compete on Saturday night. #3-ranked […]

Continue Reading UFC 308 Backup Fighter Diego Lopes Predicts Topuria vs. Holloway at MMA News.

The UFC 308 main event is one of the biggest fights of the year between featherweight champion Ilia Topuria and his first challenger, Max Holloway. As is often the case with a fight of this magnitude, there is a backup fighter on standby in case either man is unable to compete on Saturday night.

#3-ranked Diego Lopes is in Abu Dhabi and will make weight on Friday knowing that he could be asked to step in and fight if anything happens to the main event. The Brazilian is coming off of a big win over Brian Ortega at UFC 306 but won’t likely be the next title challenger given Alexander Volkanovski’s current position.

Topuria vs Holloway is a fascinating contest but in the case that the fight falls apart at some stage on fight week, having a top contender and fan favorite ready and waiting would soften the blow.

In an interview with Submission Radio, Lopes gave his prediction for the headline attraction at the Etihad Arena on October 26. He’s previously stated that fighting Holloway would be his dream fight because he’s been watching him for a long time.

Despite the adoration that he has for the BMF titleholder, Lopes named the defending champion as his pick for the main event. A victory for “El Matador” on Saturday will surely lead to him bringing the belt back to Spain in the near future and this is something that the Brazilian contender also has his eye on.

“I hope, bro, I don’t know it’s crazy but Ilia mention my name. UFC have plans for UFC in Spain, UFC need the guy who speaks Spanish for the promotion for the fight. I don’t know, maybe Ilia wins, I win too. Maybe we go Spain, I speak Spanish for the promotion for UFC in Spain, it’s good.”

Continue Reading UFC 308 Backup Fighter Diego Lopes Predicts Topuria vs. Holloway at MMA News.