It’s a massive fight day in Abu Dhabi as the featherweight title is on the line between one of MMA’s fastest rising stars and a legend of the division.
Ilia Topuria makes his first defence of the belt since knocking out Alexander Volkanovski back in February against former champion Max Holloway. The Hawaiian moved up to lightweight to take the BMF belt from Justin Gaethje in a stunning knockout at UFC 300, and is now back down in search of another title.
In the co-main event, Khamzat Chimaev is back and facing his toughest challenge yet as he takes on Robert Whittaker in what could prove a middleweight decider. Sean Strickland will have something to say about that, but there are certainly high stakes in this important middleweight clash.
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The card is filled from top to bottom with fun match-ups that will excite fans in the Middle East and those watching at a special start time of 10am Eastern. Headlining the prelims is a welterweight clash between hard-hitting Geoff Neal and former lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos.
And on the main card, fan favorite Shara Magomedov is back in action against Armen Petrosyan. Just above him is a light-heavyweight title eliminator between Alex Pereira’s great rival Magomed Ankalaev and Aleksandar Rakic.
ILIA TOPURIA KNOCKS OUT MAX HOLLOWAY
Topuria becomes the first man the knock out Holloway as he swarms with a series of strikes in the third frame. What a performance!
[Link]Back and forth they go!
Both men had their moments in a great second round of elite-level striking exchanges.
[Link]First round is in the books…
Topuria kicked off things by pointing to the floor as promised, but then he spent most of the first frame wrestling Holloway, who managed to avoid taking any punishment on the floor.
[Link]Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway are in the Octagon!
The featherweight title UFC 308 main event is just moments away.
Khamzat Chimaev taps out Robert Whitakker
Chimaev charged across the Octagon and took Whittkaer to the ground where he dominated him before eventually securing a first-round submission win via face crank.
[Link]Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev are set to clash in the UFC 308 co-main event
Both men are hyped ahead of their middleweight title eliminator.
[Link]Magomed Ankalaev calls out Alex Pereira
Ankalaev earned unanimous 29-28 scorecards to beat Rakic before telling Pereira to ‘stop running away’ during his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier.
[Link]Magomed Ankalaev and Aleksandar Rakic are about to throw down at UFC 308
Who will be next for light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira?
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Lerone Murphy keeps his perfect record intact
Murphy suffered a heavy knockdown in round one but recovered well to win the next two rounds and the fight courtesy of unanimous 29-28 scorecards from the judges.
[Link]Lerone Murphy vs Dan Ige is up next
Two featherweight contenders collide in a highly anticipated UFC 308 fight.
[Link]Sharaputdin Magomedov scores epic KO!
‘Bullet’ got his first spinning backfist blocked before launching straight into another that connected cleanly on Petrosyan’s jaw and sent him crashing to the canvas in round two.
[Link]Sharaputdin Magomedov vs Armen Petrosyan is next
Magomedov looks to improve to 15-0 in the first fight on the UFC 308 main card.
[Link]Ibo Aslan TKO’s Raffael Cerqueira inside a minute
Aslan makes it look easy as he gives Cerqueira his first taste of defeat with a 51-second KO.
[Link]Ibo Aslan vs Raffael Cerqueira are in the cage
Two light heavyweight prospects collide in the featured UFC 308 prelim.
[Link]Rafael dos Anjos suffers quick TKO defeat
Neal scored two early knockdowns, but the fight ended inconclusively as dos Anjos suffered a knee injury and could not continue fighting.
[Link]Geoff Neal vs Rafael dos Anjos is up next
Former lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos steps up to welterweight for his 36th UFC fight against Geoff ‘Handz of Steel’ Neal.
[Link]Mateusz Rebecki beats Myktybek Orolbai by Split Decision
What a fight, fair scorecards 29-28 either way, that’s an incredible finish to proceedings!
[Link]Now it’s getting gory
Olbai has cut Rebecki badly, he’s giving everything to try and get the finish! And the Pole gets to his feet. What a final few seconds!
[Link]Doctor called before the fight resumes
Orolbai has a severely injured eye, time for Rebecki to get on the offensive!
[Link]Cracking first round between these two
It’s quite the matchup. Rebecki is 19-2 while Orolbai is 13-1-1. And they’re fighting like two men who don’t know how to lose, both powering forward for an exciting clash thus far.
[Link]Myktybek Orolbai vs Mateusz Rebecki up next
Another fight with some weight controversy, let’s see how this one plays out! Sounds like Orolbai has been through the ringer just to get here.
[Link]Abus Magomedov beats Brunno Ferreira by R2 SUB
The rally from round two when he was viciously dropped twice is astounding as Magomedov lands a submission arm triangle to win the fight!
[Link]Abus Magomedov vs Brunno Ferreira up next
Exciting middleweight matchup here as the action continues in Abu Dhabi.
[Link]UFC 308 is 20th UFC event in Abu Dhabi
15 title fights, 11 Hall of Famers, just some of the stats shown on screen between fights.
[Link]Kennedy Nzechukwu beats Chris Barnett by Round 1 TKO
We finally have a knockout, and it comes in heartbreaking fashion as the returning ‘Beast Boy’ Chris Barnett suffers an injury and is stopped, relatively mercifully, by Kennedy Nzechukwu.
[Link]Quite the size difference here
Chris Barnett is just 5’9″ in the heavyweight division, but he faces one of the tallest heavyweights in Nzechukwu, who is a massive 6’5″.
[Link]Now it’s time for fun
Chris Barnett is back in action for the first time in over two years! He takes on Kennedy Nzechukwu moving up from light-heavyweight, and he’s a monster underdog. The fans go nuts in Abu Dhabi.
[Link]Farid Basharat beats Victor Hugo by UD
Three fights, three decisions thus far. Solid victory for the far-outsized Basharat.
[Link]Basharat impressive thus far
A massive weight miss like that seems almost like cheating, particularly for the much bigger Hugo who should have been forced to move up after his previous miss. But Basharat is holding his own in there.
[Link]Farid Basharat vs Victor Hugo up next
An emotional fight for Basharat, who agreed to allow the fight to be moved up an entire weight division after tracking towards making the bantamweight limit. Hugo 10lb over the bantamweight limit for this now-featherweight fight.
Ismail Naurdiev beats Bruno Silva by UD
30-27 across the board for Naurdiev, that’s the judging back in wack for now!
Bruno Silva vs Ismail Naurdiev up next
Middleweights next as Brazilian Silva takes on Moroccan Naurdiev
[Link]Wild judging call in that opening bout
The commentary team can’t believe what they’re seeing. 30-27 in favor of Fakhretdinov is a complete stunner.
[Link]Rinat Fakhretdinov beats Carlos Leal by UD
29-28×2 and 30-27 on the other, that’s a wild score. How in the world did Leal not win that?
Rinat Fakhretdinov struggling with Carlos Leal
This short-notice fight has been a real slug-fest thus far, Leal is going to win it, but a solid display from both men.
[Link]Rinat Fakhretdinov and Carlos Leal get us underway
The welterweight division kicks us off tonight in Abu Dhabi. Good scrap to kick us off.
[Link]We kick off in just a couple of minutes
Rinat Fakhretdinov vs Carlos Leal is our first fight if the night! Welcome to everyone just tuning in!
[Link]Chris Barnett is back on the prelims
For the first time in over two years, fan favorite Chris Barnett is competing under the UFC banner.
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UFC 308 stream info, how to watch and price
UFC 308 is available to purchase through ESPN+ for $80, but you must also subscribe for $11 a month in order to get the PPV, meaning an overall cost of $91. If you aren’t already subscribed to ESPN+, new users can bundle UFC 308 in with the cost of an annual subscription for a 30% discount, meaning a price of $134.98 that includes a year of ESPN+
UFC 308 prelims will be aired live on ESPN+ as part of the subscription package, which again costs $11.
UK viewers will have to buy the event via TNT Sport Box Office. This marks a big change from standard UFC pay-per-view events in the region, which are usually aired as part of the TNT package. The PPV will cost British viewers £19.99, and can be purchased without being a TNT Sport customer.
[Link]UFC 308 full fight card
UFC 308 Main Card
Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway
Robert Whittaker vs. Khamzat Chimaev
Dan Ige vs. Lerone Murphy
Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakic
Shara Magomedov vs. Armen Petrosyan
UFC 308 Prelims
Geoff Neal vs. Rafael dos Anjos
Myktybek Orolbai vs. Mateusz Rębecki
Abus Magomedov vs. Brunno Ferreira
Chris Barnett vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu
Farid Basharat vs. Victor Hugo
Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Carlos Leal
Ibo Aslan vs. Raffael Cerqueira
Ismail Naurdiev vs. Bruno Silva
Welcome to the Bloody Elbow live blog for UFC 308
Good morning and welcome to Bloody Elbow’s live coverage from the Emirates Arena in Abu Dhabi for UFC 308.
It’s set to be an exciting fight day, with action kicking off at an oddly early hour for fans around the world. Americans on the West Coast have to get up at 11am for the main card, which means a surprisingly early 7pm start time as far across as the UK.
We’ll have like action and updates all day as we head into an action-packed event, with featherweight gold on the line and a lot of major world title implications.
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