Fight Coverage
Main Event Spotlight | UFC 298: Volkanovski vs Topuria
Take A Closer Look At The Featherweight Title Fight Between 145-Pound Champion Alexander Volkanovski And Ilia Topuria at UFC 298: Volkanovski vs Topuria in Anaheim, CA
After challenging the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Islam Makhachev, on short notice in October, featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski returns to the 145-pound division to defend his title for the sixth time.
At UFC 298, Volkanovski puts his belt on the line against Ilia Topuria in Anaheim, California. The undefeated challenger won all six of his UFC fights thus far and has earned three straight performance bonuses ahead of his first shot at UFC gold.
Unlike Topuria, who couldn’t have more momentum leading into UFC 298’s main event, Volkanovski suffered two defeats in his last three fights, both against Makhachev in his quest to become the fifth two-division champion in UFC history.
While Volkanovski’s first fight against the P4P king earned Fight of the Year honors, the second, which he accepted on short notice, was far more devastating. Only three minutes into the first round, Makhachev landed a perfect head kick to close the show early.
But between those two fights, Volkanovski proved that he’s the featherweight champion for good reason. At UFC 290 in July, Volkanovski defended his title against Yair Rodriguez, and did it flawlessly. Not only that, but “The Great” is undefeated at 145 pounds, winning all 16 of his professional fights at featherweight.
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Volkanovski first captured gold in 2019, when he defeated Max Holloway at UFC 245. Despite winning via unanimous decision, the fight was extremely close in the fans’ eyes. So Volkanovski doubled down and defeated Holloway in an immediate rematch seven months later.
He then defeated Brian Ortega, “The Korean Zombie,” Holloway a third time, and Rodriguez to successfully defend his title five times, which is two short of Jose Aldo’s featherweight record of seven title defenses. Volkanovski is currently riding an 11-fight win streak at featherweight in the UFC, which is the longest active win streak in the division and the second longest all-time behind Max Holloway (13).
One of the main reasons Volkanovski is so successful is his overwhelming striking attack. Volkanovski averages a significant strike differential of +3.03 per minute, which is the most in the history of the featherweight division. Conor McGregor sits in second place all-time at +2.51.
Rather than slowing down as the fight reaches the later rounds, Volkanovski’s striking improves. “The Great” lands 6.8 significant strikes per minute throughout an entire fight but lands an average of 7.52 significant strikes per minute in the fifth round, the fourth highest rate ever in that round. A lot of that success can be attributed to his excellent gas tank and durability.
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Part of the reason Volkanovski’s gas tank holds up into the championship rounds is because of his efficiency. Volkanovski, who connects on 57.1 percent of his significant strike attempts, is the third most efficient striker in the featherweight division’s history. In his 11 UFC fights at 145 pounds, Volkanovski has landed 1,320 total significant strikes, the fourth highest all-time in the division.
Ilia Topuria | Top Finishes
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Ilia Topuria | Top Finishes
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Despite Volkanovski’s impressive striking statistics, many fans still aren’t sure how it’ll match up against Topuria at UFC 298. Starting his professional mixed martial arts career with seven straight submission victories, six of which came in the first round, Topuria has become more and more comfortable on the feet as his career has progressed.
In March of 2022, Topuria even moved up a weight class to challenge England’s Jai Herbert, who had significant height and reach advantages. After overcoming some early adversity, Topuria closed the show with a highlight-reel knockout one minute into the second round.
In his most recent fight, Topuria proved his striking was up there with the best in the division against Josh Emmett in his first UFC main event. While Topuria wasn’t able to get a finish, his Fight of the Night earning performance put him next in line to challenge for the belt.
Topuria out-struck Emmett 171-89 over 25 minutes and scored a knockdown. He has now successfully knocked down four of his six UFC opponents. His knockdown average of 0.81 knockdowns per 15 minutes at featherweight is the 5th highest knockdown rate among active 145ers.
Topuria’s striking defense was equally impressive that night. While Emmett landed 89 strikes, he missed on over 71 percent of his 309 total strike attempts. Topuria has successfully evaded 67.4 percent of his featherweight opponents’ significant strike attempts against him, which is the best defense among active featherweights and is third highest in the division’s history.
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When looking at UFC 298’s main event fighters side-by-side, Volkanovski appears to have the advantage in volume and accuracy while Topuria has the power advantage. While the champion lands 6.19 strikes per minutes, which is nearly double the UFC average, he lands only 0.37 knockdowns per 15 minutes. Topuria, meanwhile, lands 4.44 strikes per minute but gets 0.97 knockdowns over three rounds. When you’re dealing with two durable fighters, typically volume reigns supreme, especially when the fight enters the championship rounds, but how often will Volkanovski’s durability be tested by Topuria’s power?
Journey To Champion | Alexander Volkanovksi
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Journey To Champion | Alexander Volkanovksi
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Another important factor in this fight is the grappling. While it appears Topuria now favors striking over taking his opponents to the ground, we can’t forget how dangerous he is when he does take the fight there. This was evident in his fight against Bryce Mitchell. After finding a lot of success on the feet, Topuria decided to throw Mitchell to the ground and work his way to a second-round submission victory.
Topuria secures 56.3 percent of his attempted takedowns, which is well above the UFC average of 37.8 percent. When on the ground, Topuria tries to make the most of his control time by mixing in strikes and submissions. He averages 1.46 submission attempts per 15 minutes, which is nearly triple the UFC average.
But if you know anything about Volkanovski, he’s incredibly difficult to take down. In his Fight of the Year against Makhachev, one of the best wrestlers in the UFC, Volkanovski stuffed five of Makhachev's nine takedown attempts.
On paper, UFC 298’s main event between Volkanovski and Topuria seems far too difficult to predict, which makes it all the more exciting to watch and find out who’s the best featherweight on the planet.
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And don’t forget, UFC 298 also features a pivotal bantamweight matchup between Merab Dvalishvili and former two-division champion Henry Cejudo. Ian Garry puts his undefeated record on the line against Geoff Neal, and Mackenzie Dern returns to the Octagon to face Amanda Lemos.
UFC 298: Volkanovski vs Topuria took place live from Honda Center in Anaheim, California on February 17, 2024. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
