Featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski’s title fight vs. Ilia Topuria at UFC 298 has a date.
Volkanovski (26-3 MMA, 13-2 UFC) will look to notch his sixth title defense when he takes on unbeaten Topuria (14-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) on Feb. 17, the UFC announced Wednesday morning. A location and venue weren’t mentioned.
Volkanovski will return to featherweight after falling short against lightweight champion Islam Makhachev a second time at UFC 294. With a full training camp, Volkanovski took Makhachev to the brink in their first fight at UFC 284, but he stepped in on less than two weeks’ notice for a second opportunity last month in Abu Dhabi. Volkanovski lost the rematch by first-round knockout.
In between his lightweight title fights against Makhachev, Volkanovski finished Yair Rodriguez by third-round TKO to retain his 145-pound title at UFC 290 this past July.
Topuria has looked dominant since joining the UFC roster in 2020. After four straight finishes over Damon Jackson, Ryan Hall, Jai Herbert, and Bryce Mitchell, the Georgian fighter dominated Josh Emmett in the UFC on ABC 5 main event to earn his third bonus in a row.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 298.
