Sunday 18th February
LIVE in the Sports Bar From 1pm
Australia’s Alexander Volkanovski Vs Ilia Topuria for the Featherweight Title
Australia’s Robert Whittaker Vs Paulo Costa in the Middleweight division
Marcos Rogerio De Lima Vs New Zealand’s Justin Tafa in the prelim Heavyweight division from approx. 11am.
At UFC 298, Volkanovski puts his belt on the line against Ilia Topuria in Anaheim, California. The undefeated challenger won all six of his UFC fights thus far and has earned three straight performance bonuses ahead of his first shot at UFC gold.
Unlike Topuria, who couldn’t have more momentum leading into UFC 298’s main event, Volkanovski suffered two defeats in his last three fights, both against Makhachev in his quest to become the fifth two-division champion in UFC history.
Part of the reason Volkanovski’s gas tank holds up into the championship rounds is because of his efficiency. Volkanovski, who connects on 57.1 percent of his significant strike attempts, is the third most efficient striker in the featherweight division’s history. In his 11 UFC fights at 145 pounds, Volkanovski has landed 1,320 total significant strikes, the fourth highest all-time in the division.
Despite Volkanovski’s impressive striking statistics, many fans still aren’t sure how it’ll match up against Topuria at UFC 298. Starting his professional mixed martial arts career with seven straight submission victories, six of which came in the first round, Topuria has become more and more comfortable on the feet as his career has progressed.
On paper, UFC 298’s main event between Volkanovski and Topuria seems far too difficult to predict, which makes it all the more exciting to watch and find out who’s the best featherweight on the planet.
Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker will aim to get back in the win column when he faces one-time title challenger Paulo Costa. The two were originally slated to fight at UFC 284 this past February, but Costa pulled out following a contract dispute with the promotion.
Whittaker, the No. 4-ranked middleweight in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings, was last seen on the receiving end of TKO loss to current No. 1 contender Dricus Du Plessis at UFC 290. Prior to that setback, “The Reaper” pulled off a dominant decision win over Marvin Vettori at UFC Paris in 2022.
Costa, the No. 8-ranked middleweight, has not fought since defeating former champion Luke Rockhold in a thrilling three-round war at UFC 278 in August 2022.
UFC 298 also features a pivotal bantamweight matchup between Merab Dvalishvili and former two-division champion Henry Cejudo. Ian Garry puts his undefeated record on the line against Geoff Neal, and Mackenzie Dern returns to the Octagon to face Amanda Lemos.
