UFC 308 Main Event Best Bet
October usually marks a trip over to Abu Dhabi for the UFC, and this year is no different. As a fight fan, there’s something special about a PPV card taking place in the afternoon, considering you still have the rest of the night to be a normal human being. Hence, why many fans look forward to this October PPV offering from the UFC. Add in the fact that they usually bring a banger card, it makes it all the better. Read more UFC 308 main event best bet below.
In the main event, Ilia Topuria looks to successfully defend his featherweight title for the first time after winning it back in January.
Max Holloway aims to reclaim a title he held and defended four times from 2016-2019.
Will the youngest champion in the UFC continue to assert himself at the top of the 145lb mountain? Or will “Blessed” remind us of all why he is the best? Read on to see how this epic clash could go down and who will leave Abu Dhabi as the featherweight king.
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Ilia Topuria
It’s been amazing watching the ascent of Topuria, someone I have been following since mid-2018. Topuria finished all 8 of his wins before making it to the UFC and making his debut on short notice.
That night he went to a decision for the first time in his career but managed to get back to his finishing ways in his next four fights, which made way for his first main event showdown with Josh Emmett in June 2023. No one had done to Emmett what Topuria had done that night, establishing himself as the clear number one contender.
Although many thought the champion, Volkanovski, should have taken off more time after getting knocked by just less than three months prior, Topuria signed on the dotted line to challenge the champion. The result was a second-round knockout victory for Topuria, allowing him to reach the top of the promotion in just over three years.
Known as one of the first BJJ black belts to hail from Spain, Topuria had used a grapple heavy approach earlier in his career to get opponents down and dominate them on the mat.
Since joining the UFC, Topuria has leaned more on his improving boxing skills which has led to four knockout victories, none more important than when he laid out Volkanovski in January. There are some technical aspects he can look to improve upon, as we did see Volkanovski have success with lateral movement and straight shots. However, Topuria does a good job of wrangling opponents behind the warning track in the cage, then letting go with his big shots to find the button.
Max Holloway
A 3-3 start to Holloway’s UFC career from 2012-2013 led to an impressive 13-fight winning streak which included winning and defending the UFC featherweight title on multiple occasions. The confidence and winning streak pushed Holloway to 155 lbs to try capturing a second title, but he came up short against Dustin Poirier in April 2019. He bounced back by defending his title against Frankie Edgar just 3 months later, then his rivalry with Alexander Volkanovski began. Losing to him twice put Holloway back on the hunt for contendership, which is when we saw him put on the performance of a lifetime against Calvin Kattar.
Landing 445 significant strikes in 25 minutes, Holloway reached as close to perfection as you could. A win over Yair Rodriguez followed that which made way for Holloway to get a third crack at Volkanovski. Unfortunately, it just seemed like Volkanovski had the perfect solution to Holloway’s style and beat him emphatically. Holloway has returned to contendership once again, but most recently winning the BMF title by putting on another elite performance and finish against Justin Gaethje at the historic UFC 300, back in April. With a new king at the top of the division, Holloway looks to capture his gold back once again this weekend.
Holloway’s output, cardio, and volume have always been the best parts of his game. Durability is a big component as he is hittable, but he has rarely, if ever, been rocked or dropped.
This allows him to enter the pocket with more confidence than normal and throw a barrage of shots. These strikes may not land with a whole lot of power, but the continuous battering and pressure could lead to a mercy stoppage late in fights just like when he defeated Jose Aldo and Brian Ortega. It’s not a knockout shot that Holloway is looking for, it’s more of a slow beatdown and breaking he is hoping to implement to lead to drowning his opponents in deep water.
The Pick
It was surprising to see Topuria entrenched as such a big favorite here, but it makes sense considering the run he is on and how he has disposed of his opposition. With that said, Holloway provides a whole different obstacle. Someone that won’t go away easy, and someone that will pull him into deep water.
Sure, Topuria’s cardio looked great against Josh Emmet, but how does it look against someone that won’t allow him to dictate the pace? This will be competitive for about 12.5-15 minutes, but once championship rounds hit, I expect the cardio, volume, and pressure of Holloway to start breaking Topuria. Predicting a finish in championship rounds is not out of the question. It does not need to come by a one-punch KO, but I’m assuming we will see a smothering and suffocation of shots from Holloway that gets Topuria out of there in round 4 or 5. No need to be greedy, just shoot on his moneyline which is fruitful enough.
Holloway +200
