Once again, Max Holloway and Ilia Topuria are exchanging words as Topuria wants another stipulation in their fight. The reigning champion has his eyes on another idea that harkens back to Holloway’s last fight. Holloway and Topuria square off in six days’ time at UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi, and the two have done a great job of promoting the fight so far.
Holloway Laughs at Topuria Again
Topuria wants one of the fastest knockouts in UFC history and to recreate one of Max Holloway’s most iconic moments with his last-second UFC 300 win. However, Holloway is of the mind that Topuria does not understand the significance of the moment.
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Holloway scoffed at Topuria’s promise of an early slugfest at UFC 308.
“The point down moment — I don’t think he gets the gist of it,” Holloway said. “At the end of the day the point down, it’s something that you do towards the ending of the fight. If something is going good, if the fight is entertaining or you’re winning, you give the other guy a shot. The moment is the moment for a reason…
“The belt is called the ‘Blessed Man Forever’ or what you guys want to call ‘the baddest mother ‘effer,’” Holloway said. “If the belt was the ‘DMF,’ the dumbest mother ‘effer, then maybe I would get sucked into it. It’s far from that. Like what I told you, and I told him, he talks about being a boxer — that’s not very much boxer IQ’ish of him, but we’ll see what happens.” (h/t MMA Fighting)
At one point, their banter even touched on the BMF title. Topuria initially wanted a shot at Holloway’s BMF title, but the UFC had other ideas. Instead, he has been campaigning for it ever since and even bought his own replica belt to claim that he is the “baddest” in the UFC.
Holloway thought that Topuria declaring himself champion of something he had not earned was odd, even though the BMF title is completely ceremonial. Holloway earned the title by flatlining Justin Gaethje in the final second of their fight at UFC 300.
“If you’re over there buying your own BMF belt that’s kind of a weird mentality, bro,” Holloway said. “I don’t know, it’s sus.”
Even so, Holloway and Topuria have less than ten days before they enter the Octagon for the first time together. They avoided getting personal, but Holloway’s needling about the BMF belt seems to be getting under Topuria’s skin.
“The BMF is not a title,” Holloway said. “The BMF is something that the fans and the people and your peers put you in. This whole time him and his fans like harassing me and even telling me put up my title. I’m like, bro, I have no choice. I mean, you gotta have that talk with Dana White and Hunter [Campbell].”
Could the BMF Title Change Hands in the Future?
The BMF title is nothing but a promotional title designed to generate interest, but it is a cool gimmick that the UFC dreamt up. The original BMF champion was Jorge Masvidal, who earned the title after defeating Nate Diaz. After Gaethje got the title, Holloway finished him to earn the BMF title. Interestingly enough, Belal Muhammad has a lineal claim to all three BMF titles.
This means that while the BMF title sits in Holloway’s hands, it could easily change hands after the Topuria fight if the UFC decides to make it a fight between another two people.
Regardless, the fight between Holloway and Topuria should be a good one, and the time it goes down is even better for US and UK fans. The card starts at 3 PM EST, equivalent to 8 PM EST. That card will be one to remember.
Featured Image Credits to Embed from Getty Images
