UFC President Dana White dropped some big news on Monday, with a number of massive fights announced — including Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria.
Volkanovski (26-3) has been widely expected to defend his featherweight title against Topuria (14-0), with talk of the fight swirling even before the Australian champ stepped up on short notice against lightweight champ Islam Makhachev last month.
While a January date had been floated for Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria, a head kick KO loss at the hands of Makhachev appears to have set the fight back a month. No matter. White’s Monday announcement almost certainly means the Volkanovski vs. Topuria will headline UFC 298, which does not yet have a location, venue, or broadcast plan officially announced.
No other bouts have been announced or reported for the event. There’s a chance the fight will be held in Australia, however, with February trips down under a common occurrence for the UFC, who visited Perth in Feb. 2023.
Between losses to Makhachev, Volkanovski successfully defended his 145lb title against Yair Rodriguez at UFC 290 in July, capping off International Fight Week 2023.
Topuria, meanwhile, remains undefeated through his professional career. After going 2-0 in 2022, he fought just once this year, defeating Josh Emmett in the main event of UFC on ABC 5 this past June.
