Should the BMF title be up for grabs?

The UFC is back in Abu Dhabi this Saturday with a high-profile UFC 308 event headlined by the featherweight world title fight between Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway. This main event is one of the most exciting fights in the sport and is sure to delight fight fans around the world.

Topuria is the current champion and he has used his words frequently leading up to this fight. He has managed to expand his brand as an antagonist and stir up some discussion in the MMA community. Will he show up in his biggest fight yet? Or will 25 minutes of battle-hardened, humble Max Holloway be too much?

The story of the tape

How these two champions compete

For true fight fans, this is a perfect matchup to watch on Saturday afternoon. The brash, cocky, undefeated young champion who has shown incredible skills in the octagon, facing off against the proven future Hall of Famer looking to become undisputed champion again in a career resurgence.

Physically, Holloway will be the bigger guy, and he has proven that his featherweight frame is underrated and overlooked by many fans and fighters alike. He’s a big featherweight who can easily compete as a lightweight, but still has a lot of work to do in the division where he made his name.

Although smaller, Topuria has long arms similar to Holloway’s and can reach his opponents’ chins from the outside. He is also a very good athlete and extremely explosive in the octagon.

Is Topuria the most dangerous featherweight of all time?

What the reigning champion brings to his first title defense

• Since his UFC debut, he has defeated five of his last six opponents.
• He is coming off a knockout win against arguably the greatest featherweight of all time.
• A mix of elite boxing and dangerous grappling skills make him very dangerous.
• Has great self-confidence because of the work he does

Ilia Topuria is as confident as a professional fighter can be in their career. Undefeated, he finished everyone, even the greatest featherweight in the world; Topuria believes he cannot be touched at the moment. Is he right?

Everything is currently going well for the Georgian-born Spaniard. The fame, the money and the good looks; Not to mention the incredible power he has in the octagon. This is a reality because he works so hard in the gym. From the content the UFC has posted about Topuria, it appears that he works harder than anyone else in the gym. He does this so he can walk into the octagon on fight night knowing he can beat anyone in the world.

Confidence is a formidable weapon for Topuria, but what makes him the most dangerous featherweight in the world right now is his skill. From his wonderful boxing techniques to his smooth rhythm in his defensively responsible stance to his aggressive, suffocating grappling skills. This child is a problem.

He is one of the best body punchers on the UFC roster. Understanding that early injury to the opponent’s body will affect the cardiovascular system later in the fight, triggering blows to the head that quickly end the fight. Topuria has boxing skills that would be great to see in the ring, but unfortunately they will have to see him in the cage at featherweight.

Max Holloway is still the final opponent in the featherweight division

What can “Blessed” do to reclaim the featherweight throne?

• He is the BMF champion for a reason.
• Making Topuria unpleasant will go a long way after the first few rounds.
• He needs to develop a game plan for a long fight.

This is a very difficult fight for Holloway. He has the experience and proven legend status and has seen just about every type of elite MMA fighter to grace the octagon, but Topuria is a different kind of cat.

Experience and cognitive ability are two important assets that Holloway must utilize. He has to fight safely early on and not get injured. As Holloway has told the media, Topuria expects to hurt his opponents early to gain a cardio advantage as the fight progresses.

If Holloway can stay away from Topuria’s power in the first two rounds, his pressure and activity in the octagon will become a weapon. Topuria has never experienced a fourth and fifth round with someone who didn’t walk away. Holloway can do just that.

An uncomfortable and tired Topuria will be very different in the 4th round than he was in the first round. Holloway’s game plan must be to win the final two rounds and potentially break the 27-year-old undefeated champion to get to the finish.

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Should the BMF title be on the line?

Why isn’t this a unified title fight?

There has been a lot of discussion throughout the MMA community as to why the BMF title is not on the line this weekend. The BMF belt was made for a fight between Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal, when these two were, by consensus, the “baddest motherfuckers” on the UFC roster.

Holloway has mentioned several times leading up to this event that he has no influence over which belts are up for grabs. Which is true. The UFC is in charge and if they wanted the BMF to be included in this title fight then they would be. It’s that simple.

To all the UFC fans who complain about why that belt isn’t on the line and say, “If Topuria takes out Holloway, it should be his,” you’re wrong. Topuria is nowhere near what the BMF title originally stood for. Holloway embodies it perfectly.

After knocking out featherweight legend Alex Volkanovski earlier this year, Topuria said he wouldn’t give any of the top contenders a title shot. That’s not what a BMF does.

The official prediction for Topuria vs. Holloway

How is this fight going?

As a bettor, it feels like getting Max Holloway at underdog odds would be a bargain. But the truth is, all six of his UFC losses came as an underdog. However, he also achieved great victories as an underdog. For example, when he first won the belt against the great Jose Aldo, or knocking out Justin Gaethje earlier this year and winning the BMF title.

Holloway fans will have an easy time betting money on him this weekend. You should also be confident. He has the experience and skills to pull off this one-off and humble the undefeated hype train currently sweeping through the division.

This fight can go far too many ways and is too closely aligned to make a reliable prediction. But my official prediction for this featherweight title is that it will be Fight of the Year contender and there will be a lot of angry fans on one side.

I think Topuria will have success against Holloway. This could hurt him and drop him early or dominate him on the ground for a round or two. But this exchange could easily work in Holloway’s favor. Counter from the outside and move out of range, resulting in thwarted takedown attempts.

What does Topuria do when he’s two rounds into the fight, has a bloody nose and is 0-3 takedown attempts? He would be tired and Holloway would become more confident by the second. But then Topuria can catch him and put him to sleep in the next round.

The real winners of this fight will be the UFC fans. It will be a display of elite skill, heart and showmanship between two of the best fighters in the world; the biggest fight of this second half of 2024. The only loser of this fight will be the UFC. Either they will temporarily lose their undefeated superstar in Spain, or they will have a BMF champion suffering defeat.

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