Current BMF champion Max Holloway is all set to take on Ilia Topuria in his second fight for the year 2024 at UFC 308. ‘Blessed’ is fresh off a victory against Justin Gaethje at the historic UFC 300 event. His next challenge is to win the featherweight title against a man who is unbeaten in his UFC career.

In an ideal situation, only if he manages to win the fight he will be in contention to become the fighter of the year. However, he will be competing against a man who seems absolutely unbeatable at the moment. And that is the Brazilian juggernaut, Alex Pereira. In a recent interview, he shared his honest opinion on the light-heavyweight champion.

Max Holloway feels Alex Pereira might have had the best year of his career

37-year-old Alex Pereira was last seen inside the Octagon at UFC 307 in his third title defense of the year. ‘Poatan’ took on Khalil Rountree Jr. in a highly exciting light-heavyweight clash. Many experts felt that the Brazilian might struggle against the power of the #8 ranked fighter. However, Pereira showed the world that he is more than just a lethal striker but a complete fighter. His latest victory has given him a clear-cut lead against most of the fighters in the UFC in the race to become the fighter of the year.

Max Holloway is also aware of this fact and has no problem in accepting that the Brazilian was a better fighter this year. The Hawaiian native recently sat down for a chat with Kevin Iole on his YouTube channel. While speaking to the host, Holloway shared his honest opinion on ‘Poatan’. While he does believe that a win against Topuria might fit him in contention for the Fighter of the Year. However, that is a tough ask ahead of him. Pereira has competed thrice in the year and successfully defended his title, which might give him a nod ahead.

Holloway said, “I mean, I don’t know, man. I don’t know if they’ll do that. The way Alex took the fight. I mean the fastest guy to defend his title, right? Three title defenses. That’s a hard man to beat. I mean, every time I’m in the talks for it, somebody’s having a crazy year, and I think Alex Pereira has already. ” 

Holloway is preparing for his toughest battle against featherweight king Ilia Topuria. ‘El Matador’ has been pretty vocal about the outcome of the fight and is confident that he would knock him out. Topuria has even claimed that he would shut his lights in the first ten seconds of the fight. However, the Spanish-Georgian has now made it clear that he won’t be thinking twice about using his wrestling skills as well.

Ilia Topuria has multiple game plans for Max Holloway at UFC 308

Ilia Topuria certainly belongs in the upper echelon of UFC talents competing in the promotion right now and he is certainly geared up for his first title defense. ‘El Matador’ is up against one of the most prolific strikers in the division, Max Holloway. But Topuria seems absolutely unfazed by the hype surrounding the scrap and believes in his ability. He has even challenged ‘Blessed’ to try to start boxing him in the first ten seconds of the fight. But if the fight doesn’t go as planned, he has a second line of defense, which is wrestling.

During a recent interview with Kevin Iole, he shared his honest opinion on the upcoming fight. Topuria said, “I don’t want to take all the credit from Max Holloway because he demonstrates that he’s a very good fighter with a lot of experience in his back. But at the same time, it’s like he never faced someone like me, never ever.” 

He also issued a warning for Holloway and made it clear that he won’t shy away from using his wrestling skills. He said, “So he’s gonna realize that during the fight that the pressure I’m going to bring and he’s going to feel in the fight it’s completely different [than] that he felt with any other opponent he had, right? So I don’t know the moment when I’m going to take him down,”. 

Topuria is definitely capable of knocking out his opponent and can defend his title. However, one just cannot deny the fact that Max Holloway is known for pulling off the impossible. Who do you think will win the fight between the two at UFC 308? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.