ABU DHABI – Typically during UFC fight week press conferences, opponents like to shout and talk over each other. Such was the case Thursday during the UFC 308 pre-fight press conference, but Max Holloway didn’t allow featherweight champion Ilia Topuria’s actions to go unchecked.
A hot topic heading into their title fight is whether or not one of them will point to the center of the cage to invite an exchange of haymakers. When a reporter asked Holloway about this, Topuria interrupted right away and started talking trash.
That prompted a back-and-forth between Topuria and Holloway, who remained cool and collected as he repeated “let me talk” while Topuria talked over him. When the reporter followed up by asking Topuria a question, Holloway sat there in silence – until Topuria finished.
“See what I did there?” Holloway said. “I let you answer like an adult. That’s what you do in these things.”
You can watch the exchange in the video above.
The time for talking between Topuria (15-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) and Holloway (26-7 MMA, 22-7 UFC) will come to an end in just two days when they headline UFC 308 (ESPN+ pay-per-view) on Saturday at Etihad Arena.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 308.
