A huge night awaits in Abu Dhabi as UFC brings a stacked card to the Middle East.

Ilia Topuria makes the first defence of his Featherweight title against Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 308, while in the co-main Robert Whittaker takes on the feared Khamzat Chimaev.

The card also sees UK interest with Manchester’s Lerone Murphy on the main card against Dan Ige.

UFC Tips

Robert Whittaker to win @ 19/10

Magomed Ankalaev to win by Decision @ 1/1

Lerone Murphy to win by Decision @ 4/5

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Whittaker to tame the wolf?

This fight between Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev finally goes down this weekend after falling out earlier this year.

An illness for Chimaev saw him ruled out in June, with Whittaker disposing of late replacement Ikram Aliskerov in the first round in Saudi Arabia.

The Australian also fought in February, getting a unanimous points win over Paulo Costa at UFC 298.

Whittaker bounced back from defeat to now champion Dricus Du Plessis last July, suffering a second round TKO loss.

The 33-year-old has a 17-5 UFC record, with his only defeats in a 10-year stretch coming to the South African and two losses to Israel Adesanya. 

A strong wrestler with power in his hands, Whittaker has shown elite takedown defence against the likes of Yoel Romero, Ronaldo Souza and Derek Brunson.

Chimaev burst on to the scene during the UFC’s fight Island run in 2020, winning three fights in three months.

The 30-year-old has struggled for activity in more recent times due to repeated illness and weight cutting issues, with a labouring majority decision win over Kamaru Usman at Middleweight his only outing in 2023.

Now standing at 7-0, it was hoped that once Chimaev eventually committed to 185lbs that consistency would follow, but that has simply not been the case.

Changes have been made to his team and approach since June and while there is no doubt he is a fearsome talent on his day, as an underdog in the market Whittaker’s experience and activity look more than an appealing selection. 

Ankaleav to make a racket

Magomed Ankalaev returns to action looking to make a statement after missing out on a Light Heavyweight title opportunity this year. 

This fight with Aleksandar Rakić was booked prior to Khalil Rountree JR. getting a shot at Alex Pereira at UFC 307, however many felt the Russian should have already been handed his shot. 

The number-one ranked fighter was last seen in January knocking out Johnny Walker with a second round uppercut, with this bout taking place after an accidental illegal knee from Ankalaev saw the pair’s fight ruled a no contest three months earlier.

The 32-year-old saw out 2022 with a draw with Jan Błachowicz, which slightly dampened his title hopes, but overall is now on a 10-fight winning run, with names such as Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos and Volkan Oezdemir on his resume. 

Rakić comes into this on a two-fight skid, but was out of action for two years after tearing his ACL in the third round of his fight with Jan Błachowicz in May 2022.

The 32-year-old returned to action at UFC 300 in April but suffered a second round TKO to Jiří Procházka despite having some early success. 

It took number-five ranked Rakić’s UFC record to 6-3 with the Austrian also having wins over Anthony Smith and Thiago Santos. 

While Rakić brings a skillful kickboxing game to the table, Ankalaev can match him with his own more than adept stand-up and combined with his strong sambo wrestling skills is fancied to mix up the styles and get the win here. 

Home sweet home for Murphy

Lerone Murphy moved into the top 15 of the UFC’s Featherweight’s rankings earlier this year with a dominating performance against Edson Barboza.

It was the 33-year-old’s first main event spot as he scored a unanimous decision win over the future UFC Hall of Famer in Las Vegas.

The win took Murphy’s UFC record to 6-0-1 with his intelligent counter striking style making him a tough stylistic opponent.

Injuries have slowed Murphy’s progress, but for the second successive year he will have got two fights in during the calendar year. 

This will be the Manchester fighters fourth fight in Abu Dhabi, making it a home from home. 

Dan Ige was last seen at UFC 303 in June where he stepped in at four hours notice to face hot prospect Diego Lopes. 

That fight ended in a unanimous points defeat but the 33 year old put on an impressive display in the less than ideal circumstances.

The 33-year-old is 10-7 in the UFC overall, but since 2021 has a 4-5 record with the Hawaiian finding wins hard to come by when going the distance.

Ige has never been finished in 26 professional fights, while Murphy is unbeaten in 15 fights as a pro.

This one is likely to go the full 15 minutes with the U.K fighter tipped to get this one done.

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