UFC 297: Volkanovski & Topuria Agree to Featherweight Title Bout
Alexander Volkanovski vs Ilia Topuria UFC featherweight Championship bout is agreed for UFC 297 event.
Ilia Topuria revealed on the Spanish TV show El Hormiguero that while there were a few details to finalize, but he anticipated facing Alexander Volkanovski for the featherweight title at UFC 297.
Both fighters have reached an agreement for the fight, but as of now, the official announcement from the UFC has not been made.
🤝🏻 Fight Agreed: Alexander Volkanovski vs Ilia Topuria
— UFC Roster Watch (@UFCRosterWatch) October 9, 2023
– UFC 297
– January 20th
Previously, Alexander Volkanovski had expressed his desire to grant Ilia Topuria a title shot next in the featherweight division. Volkanovski has made it clear that Topuria doesn’t need to face any other opponents at this point, considering him a legitimate contender who unquestionably deserves a title shot.
Alexander Volkanovski successfully defended his championship at UFC 290, securing a knockout victory against Yair Rodriguez. Prior to his match with Rodriguez, Volkanovski suffered a defeat at UFC 284, where he challenged for UFC Lightweight Championship against Islam Makhachev. This loss marked the conclusion of Volkanovski’s remarkable 22-fight winning streak.
Volkanowski is holding onto the featherweight title since December 2019 after beating Max Holloway. He remains unbeaten in UFC featherweight division so far.
Ilia Topuria is currently enjoying a 14-fight unbeaten career run, with six of those victories coming in the UFC. His most recent bout took place at UFC on ABC 5, where he secured a unanimous decision win over Josh Emmett. The match was also recognized as the best fight of the night. Remarkably, Topuria gets a title shot just in his seventh bout in his UFC career.
UFC 297 PPV event is set to take place on January 20, 2023, and it will be broadcast live from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The co-main event is also set for the event where Arnold Allen will face Movsar Evloev in a featherweight bout.