UFC 298: Alexander Volkanovski vs Ilja Topuria Title Bout Announced
Dana White has announced that Alexander Volkanovski will defend his Featherweight Championship against Ilia Topuria at UFC 298 PPV event in February 2024̣
The featherweight encounter was earlier expected to take place at UFC 297. However, Volkanovski took a short-notice fight against Islam Makhachev to challenge for lightweight title at UFC 294 last month.
The change in the event will give Volkanovski some additional time for recovery and preparation in what will serve as his sixth featherweight title defense.
Champion Alexander Volkanovski will fight Ilia Topuria at #UFC298 on February ??. (per Dana White) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN #UFC2024 #FWChampionship pic.twitter.com/DwlOdUM8U5
— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) November 6, 2023
Volkanovski failed to beat Islam Makhachev UFC 294 as he suffered a second-round knockout. Prior to that bout, Volkanovski successfully defended his featherweight title against Yair Rodriguez at UFC 290 event. His UFC record currently stands at 13 wins, 2 losses, and 0 draws. He is unbeaten in UFC featherweight division so far, and both losses have come in lightweight title bouts.
Ilia Topuria is on an impressive 14-fight winning streak, with six of those victories coming in the UFC. In his most recent bout at UFC on ABC 5, Topuria secured a unanimous decision victory over Josh Emmett.
Before Emmett, he defeated Bryce Mitchell at UFC 282 via submission, and was awarded with Performance of the Night award.
UFC 298 PPV event is scheduled for February 2024, although the exact date and location have not been announced yet. Also, it has not been officially confirmed whether Volkanovski vs Topuria bout will act as the main event, however, it is expected to remain so.
