Ilia Topuria knocks out Alexander Volkanovski in UFC 298 main event

Featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski put his title on the line against undefeated Ilia Topuria in the UFC 298 main event on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.  

Volkanovski entered the fight coming off a knockout loss to lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in his last outing.  “The Great” moved up a weight class on 11-days notice to challenge for the 155-pound championship.  Many have questioned whether Volkanovski came back too soon.

Topuria entered the title fight ranked third in the division.  He finished four of his six UFC opponents and was coming off a one-sided decision win over Josh Emmett in his last match.  “El Matador” made a bold prediction in the lead-up to the event, claiming he’ll finish Volkanovski in the first round.

The two touched gloves and Topuria took the center of the octagon.  Volkanovski landed to the body with a kick followed by a leg kick.  He went to the body again with a kick.  Topuria tried to walk the champion down.  He connected with a right hand.  Volkanovski landed another kick to the body.  He went high with a kick but it was blocked.  Topuria stepped in with a hard leg kick.  He landed a jab.  

Volkanovski circled on the outside.  Topuria landed a leg kick.  Volkanovski switched stances.  He landed a kick to the body.  Volkanovski employed a lot of kicks.  Topuria landed a right hand followed by a second right hand.  With a minute remaining, Volkanovski landed back-to-back leg kicks.  Topuria pressed forward and Volkanovski clinched.  He delivered two knees to the body before they separated.  MMAWeekly scored the first round 10-9 for Volkanovski.  

They touched gloves to start the second frame.  Volkanovski delivered a body kick.  Topuria landed a right hand.  He pressed forward with punches but Volkanovski circled away.  Topuria connected with a combination.  He clinched and Volkanovski landed a knee on the break.  Volkanovski delivered a kick to the body.  Topuria stepped in with a right hand followed by a leg kick.  They exchanged jabs.  Topuria landed a leg kick.  Volkanovski delivered two jabs.  He landed another one.  Topuria pressed forward and landed a huge right hand that crumbled Volkanovski.  

Ilia Topuria is the new UFC featherweight champion.  The official time of the stoppage was 3:32 in the second round.