MMA
UFC 308: Ilia Topuria crushes Max Holloway with electric third-round knockout
Watch UFC 308 in the US on ESPN PPV
Ilia Topuria vowed to be the first man to knock Max Holloway out.
And then he went ahead and punched that into fruition. Topuria unloaded a raucous left hook to drop Holloway in a heap, before unrelenting hammerfists produced a scintillating third-round knockout of Holloway in the headliner of UFC 308 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, and live on pay-per-view Saturday, to retain his featherweight world title.
After two highly-contested rounds, Topuria brushed Holloway back with a huge right hand in the third round. Moments later, he uncorked the devastating left hook that dropped Holloway before finishing the knockout with some hammerfists.
With the win, Topuria improves to 16-0, adding a highlighted chapter to his own growing legend.
With the loss, Holloway (26-8) tastes his first knockout loss of his storied career.
Following his latest win, Topuria expressed interest in fighting Alexander Volkanovski in a rematch as the rivals met in the Octagon.
