Staredowns! Volk Sizes Up ‘Matador’ One Final Time

It all goes down tomorrow night (Sat., Feb. 17, 2024) at UFC 298 live on ESPN+ PPV from inside Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., as Alexander Volkanovski puts his UFC featherweight title on the line against undefeated contender Ilia Topuria.

This main event showdown between Volkanovski and Topuria is special in more than one way. Not only is Topuria undefeated and capable of shocking the champion on Saturday night, but Volkanovski is coming off a knockout loss to UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev his last time out. Sure that fight was on short notice, but it presents more questions to be answered this weekend in Anaheim as Volkanovski tries to continue his reign of dominance at 145 pounds.

On Friday, the two fighters stepped on stage for UFC 298’s ceremonial weigh ins and one final staredown. Check it out in the above video player.

In addition, UFC 298 will also feature a co-headliner pitting former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker against knockout artist Paulo Costa. There hasn’t been much said between the two fighters, but that doesn’t mean they won’t deliver fireworks on Saturday night. After all, a memorable performance from Costa could launch him into a UFC middleweight title shot by year’s end.

Check out Whittaker’s final staredown with Costa below:

UFC 298’s PPV main card will also showcase a gripping matchup between welterweight contenders Ian Machado Garry and Geoff Neal. Garry has looked unstoppable since making his UFC debut back in 2021 — racking up a 6-0 record since then — and feels ready to make a run at UFC gold. Neal, on the other hand, is coming off a submission loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov his last time out and needs a performance to regain momentum at 170 pounds. Shutting down a rising star like Garry is the perfect way for Neal to do just that.

You can check out the final faceoff between Garry and Neal below:

Finally, UFC 298 will play host to a bantamweight clash between former UFC double champion Henry Cejudo and streaking contender Merab Dvalishvili. This will be Cejudo’s second fight since returning from retirement in 2023 and he’s going to have his hands full. Dvalishvili has won nine in a row at 135 pounds and has one of the craziest gas tanks in all of combat sports. It will be an interesting matchup to say the least.

Check out their final staredown below:

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MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 298 fight card right RIGHT HERE, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches at 6:30 p.m. ET, followed by the remaining undercard balance on ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 298: “Volkanovski vs. Topuria” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here. For the updated and finalized UFC 298 fight card and ESPN+ lineup click here.