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While Ilia Topuria might very well be the next big thing at 145 pounds, Max Holloway has been there before.

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The former featherweight king has faced the best the sport has to offer over the course of an Ultimate Fighting Championship tenure that began in 2012. While “Blessed” can see some parallels betwen his and Topuria’s rise to the top, at this point in his career, the mind games that accompany pre-fight promotion don’t have much of an effect on the 32-year-old Hawaiian.

Holloway will square off against Topuria in the UFC 308 main event on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The main card airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+ at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. ET, while prelims begin on ESPN+ at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT.

“I got my first belt against former champions…Your idols become your rivals. Ilia said he’s a big fan. So I guess he did what I did, and I respect that,” Holloway said in an interview with UFC.com. “At the end of the day, all these mental games…

🇪🇸 Ilia Topuria’s custom shorts for #UFC308 are 🔥🔥🔥

🎥 @ClubDeLasMMA #UFC #MMA

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pic.twitter.com/v528bQC5o7 — Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 19, 2024

Ilia Topuria will have some special, customized fight shorts for his first featherweight title defense.

Spanish outlet Marca recently revealed the shorts, which are red and yellow with bulls on the sides, that Topuria will wear for his UFC 308 main event showdown with Max Holloway on Saturday. UFC 308 takes place Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi and airs via pay-per-view on ESPN+ at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT.

UFC 308: Topuria vs. Holloway Saturday at 2 PM ET on ESPN+. Order Now!

Topuria claimed the featherweight belt with a second-round knockout of Alexander Volkanovski in the UFC 298 headliner on Feb. 17. “El Matador” has kicked off his professional tenure with 15 straight triumphs, a run that includes seven victories in UFC competition.

A former featherweigh…

Featherweight fighter Daiane Silva is still hospitalized after a bad weight cut led to her becoming seriously ill ahead of a proposed fight at Bellator Champions Series London on Sept. 14.

Silva was slated to face Eman Almudhaf at the event but was hospitalized due to severe dehydration as a result of her cut to the featherweight limit of 146 pounds. According to multiple reports, Silva was induced into a coma for several weeks after suffering kidney failure. More recently, she has displayed some positive signs of consciousness while remaining hospitalized.

“As Daiane made weight for her debut in Bellator, she suffered an accident due to dehydration,” Silva’s manager, Alex Davis said in a statement released to MMAFighting.com. “She was promptly seen by the doctor, was rushed to the hospital in delicate condition, was admitted to intensive care. Her condition was serious, but since, she has been improving steadily and our hope is that she recovers fully. Myself, her t…

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Professional Fighters League will hold a championship twin bill of sorts in Saudia Arabia next month.

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The promotion announced on Saturday that both the PFL Championships and the PFL MENA finals will take place on Nov. 29 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The evening’s main card will feature title bouts in six PFL weight classes, topped by a featherweight championship clash between Brendan Loughnane and Timur Khizriev.

Meanwhile, the undercard will feature PFL MENA title bouts at welterweight, lightweight, featherweight and bantamweight. All told, the PFL World Championships event will showcase 10 five-round bouts.

“The Championships are the culmination of our sports-season format, where PFL athletes have beaten the odds to reach this point in the toughest test in all of sports,” PFL CEO Peter Murray said in a release. “There are multiple athletes competing who I am excited to see take that next step in their careers, while there are also returning c…

😮‍💨💥Robert Whittaker is fired up for the fight with Khamzat Chimaev

“I'm going to go in there and hunt [Khamzat] down, I'm gonna take the fight to him. I don't think he'll be able to stand up to that…

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I hope he's ready, because I am."

🎥 @KevinI ▫️ pic.twitter.com/umG7we7fpb

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) October 19, 2024 Robert Whittaker (26-7) plans to take the fight to Khamzat Chimaev (13-0) in their upcoming matchup at UFC 308.

Whittaker and Chimaev will clash in the co-main event at UFC 308 on Saturday at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. They were originally scheduled to meet at UFC Saudi Arabia this past June, but Chimaev pulled out due to severe illness. Whittaker went on beat short-notice replacement Ikram Aliskerov via knockout in the first round. Aliskerov’s only other pro loss dates back to 2019 against Chimaev, who called him the toughest matchup of his life so far.

Although Dana White has promise…

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Francis Ngannou challenged Renan Ferreira for the Super Fight heavyweight title in the main event at "Battle of the Giants: Brace for Impact" on Saturday at the Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

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“The Predator” displayed a well-rounded skillset, taking Ferreira to the ground early and surviving a triangle attempt before earning a victory via ground-and-pound in the first round. The former UFC champ then broke down in tears inside the cage while dedicating his win to his late son Kobe, who died earlier this year at 15 months old.

“I can’t think of anything than my son Kobe. I wanted to fight for him… I hope they can remember his name, because without Kobe we wouldn’t be here tonight. I wouldn’t have fight,” Ngannou said.

“In combat sports all depends on me, how I feel. How I deal with life right now. But otherwise… I always thought I still have a lot to give to combat sports. And I hope I keep thinking that way, I keep that…

Daniel Pineda put on a memorable performance at UFC Vegas 99 before retiring from MMA.

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Pineda opened the main card against fellow veteran Darren Elkins at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. The featherweights left everything inside the Octagon in a “Fight of the Night”-winning performance, setting the bar high for the rest of the card.

Elkins survived multiple guillotine attempts from Pineda to eventually earn a unanimous decision win. Pineda laid down his gloves inside the Octagon after the result was announced, prompting UFC commentator Paul Felder to allow him to have a say on the mic. “The Pit” announced his retirement after a career spanning more than a decade and a half.

“Guys that was my last one man… We were some dogs in here,” Pineda said. “It’s my third one straight. F—k it dude, I’m done. I’m done guys. Thank you Elkins for this bad ass fight.”

Pineda retires from the sport with a 28-17 professional record and a 5-8 reco…

FIRST. ROUND. FINISH!

[ #PFLSuperFights | #BraceForImpact | BUY NOW | https://t.co/kWyJTEGRvW | https://t.co/2BtPH3wso4 ] pic.twitter.com/Zuyv8eN81H

— PFL (@PFLMMA) October 19, 2024

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Francis Ngannou emphatically returned to the world of mixed martial arts on Saturday with a first-round technical knockout (3:22) over 2023 Professional Fighters League Tournament winner Renan Ferreira in the “Super Fights: Battle of the Giants” main event at The Mayadeen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Ngannou showed no rust from his over two-year hiatus from mixed martial arts. After two high-profile boxing matches against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, many wondered if Ngannou would stand and bang with the 6-foot-8 giant, but the former lineal heavyweight kingpin was too smart. Ngannou took Ferreira down with a smooth double leg and dragged him to the fence where he patiently waited to strike. Ferreira sacrificed his butterfly guard to thro…

Anthony Hernandez weathered an early storm of offense and ultimately cruised to a lopsided fifth-round TKO victory over Michel Pereira on Saturday at UFC Vegas 99 in Las Vegas. The rising middleweight contender finished Pereira with elbows at the 2:22 mark of the fifth round in a fight that could have been stopped much earlier as Pereira ran out of gas after the opening frame.

Seconds into the UFC Vegas 99 main event, Pereira hurt Hernandez with a front kick to the liver and followed up with a series of punches and knees as a wounded Hernandez covered up against the cage. Hernandez recovered and set the tone for the rest of the fight with a takedown into side control and some strong ground strikes. Pereira was poked in the eye early in the second round and he trapped Hernandez in a guillotine choke after action resumed. Hernandez escaped and scored with elbows and punches from the top, then threatened with an arm-triangle choke. Pereira managed to work his way out of Hernan…

Coverage of Saturday’s Professional Fighters League “Battle of the Giants” card will begin at 1:30 p.m. ET/10:30 a.m. PT. Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:

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Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round: The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Mike Pendleton scores the round:J.L. Kirven scores the round:The Official Result Round 1 Sherdog Scores Tristen Critchfield scores the round:Mike Pendleton s…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to its home base of Las Vegas Saturday at 4 p.m. ET with UFC Vegas 99. The event is also known as UFC Fight Night 245. BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Despaigne (-440), Lane (+340)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round: Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:The Official Result BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Martinez (-135), Ardelean (+114)Round 1 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Round 2 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:Round 3 Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round:Ben Duffy scores the round:Scottie Smith scores the round:The …