UFC 298: Volkanovski vs. Topuria

The official Tapology discussion thread for the event!

What if he wins tho, people are acting like it’s a guaranteed loss for ilia 

Is safe to say Whittaker vs Cannonier or Brendan Allen will be a fun fight and probaly a title eliminator.

Yeah I feel like this more probably end up being Whittaker vs Brendan Allen 

I will believe Costa is fighting when the first round starts…. He is gonna pull out

I don't think that's safe to say at all. Where exactly does Whittaker come into that picture even with a win over Costa? He's behind both Allen and Cannonier right now in terms of momentum. If I'm Cannonier, I'm not even interested in re-matching Whittaker when I'm already 39 years old and have a main event win over the current champ.

Whittaker is .500 since 2019 and hasn't finished a fight in over 6 years. His most impressive win since losing his belt to Izzy was beating Cannonier. That fight was pretty close and had it been a 5 round main event, it might have ended different. Cannonier had Whittaker on skates towards the end of that fight. 

There's also Khamzat and Usman to consider in the mix. I think Cannonier is a pretty logical next contender regardless of whether its against DDP or a rematch vs. Strickland. Assuming Whittaker beats Costa, his next fight would probably be against someone like Usman. 

I personally think the "title eliminator" fight you're referencing should be Allen vs. Khamzat. The winner of that would have next up after Cannonier IMO. While I don't think it happens anytime soon, even Leon Edwards has expressed interest in moving up. The UFC just has so many more interesting options than giving Whittaker another title shot right now. 

I think you totally missed his joke lmfao. He’s saying whittaker vs cannonier or Allen will be fun because costa is pulling out

It appears I did hahahaha.

Honestly, I don't think it changes my point though. If that were to happen, I could just see Whittaker getting pulled from this card altogether. I don't think Cannonier would even be ready in time (and if he's gonna rematch Whittaker he probably wants it over 5 rounds anyway) and I genuinely do think Allen is next for Khamzat. You can't find a more curated opponent to vault Khamzat into a true #1 contender spot. Allen is 11-2 in the UFC with 8 finishes. He's as good as it gets at MW and because he relies on being able to grapple, Khamzat will smoke him. 

If Costa pulls out, I think Usman would have to be the replacement or Whittaker just gets pulled altogether. 

Why would Usman take this fight? Hes not a middleweight he just took the Khamzat fight because it was there. Also Allen would absolutely take this fight in a heartbeat, he’s been begging for a title eliminator ever since he beat Craig. Allen vs Khamzat would be a baffling fight to me; his star power isn’t anywhere close to Khamzats and the public wants Khamzat to fight a big name. Plus beating number 8 does nothing for him, especially when they can book Izzy vs Khamzat 

* Edited at 12.23.2023, 12:20 PM ET *

And trust me, they aren’t saving allen to be the next opponent for Khamzat. I can almost guarantee Khamzats next fight will be against a top 5

How can you genuinely think Allen is next for Khamzat it makes no sense Allen is not popular and he's not a ranked on the top 5. Also the ufc always looks for a replacement unless the fight gets cancelled on weight ins. 

I'd love to watch Allen beatup Spazrat who goes for a panic take down and get tapped or snapped by Allen.

Usman and Whittaker was a rumored fight at one point and based on his performance against Khamzat, he can clearly fight at MW. If fighting number #8 does nothing for Khamzat, why would it do anything for Whittaker? Of course Allen would take that fight, but Whittaker wouldn't. What other options are there right now for Usman? Go back down to 170 and fight Belal or Shavkat? I think he's pretty much done with that weight cut and would rather chase a 2nd belt, especially now that Izzy is on hiatus or whatever. 

You're probably right, but I don't think it's as baffling a matchup as you're making it seem. The UFC has very clearly been trying to shake things up at MW for awhile. They gave Abus a chance against Strickland and tried throwing Ikram at Costa. Dolidze got a huge bump when he was able to beat Hermansson on short notice. Now you have Pyfer getting a main event for his 4th UFC fight as well as Bo Nickal right around the corner.

Besides Cannonier, who really has any "star power" at MW to really prop Khamzat up for a title shot that will actually agree to fight him? Does a win over Vettori really do anything for Khamzat at this point? I think the result of that DDP/Strickand fight looms large. Allen might only be 1 spot above Khamzat but he's the only other guy consistently finishing fights in the rankings besides DDP and has a 6 fight win streak that Khamzat can end. I hear you. Khamzat vs. Cannonier and Vettori vs. Allen is probably much more realistic. 

However, if Strickland can beat DDP, I don't think it's the worst matchup in the world and certainly not the weirdest one they've made at MW recently. Allen vs. Khamzat is guaranteed to end in a finish and would be a great #1 contender fight. Cannonier has a great claim to the next title shot if Strickland wins because he already has a win over him. Whether Usman stays in this division will be interesting, but I don't see why he wouldn't. 

Sure, he can fight at 185 but that doesn’t mean he needs to. Taking another short notice fight at 185 is just nonsensical; Usman has no wins at the weight class and only fought there because it was short notice. I don’t see why he would take an even harder style matchup on short notice again. And why do you say whittaker wouldn’t take the fight? On paper it’s an extremely easy win for him and gets him back in the win column after an embarrassing loss; I don’t see why he wouldn’t take it.

And for star power, I think you seem to be forgetting Izzy exists. Hes one of the biggest draws in the ufc currently and said yesterday he is coming back 2024. Izzy vs Khamzat is a matchup between two of the biggest draws in the sport and a win gets Khamzat an instant title shot

* Edited at 12.23.2023, 2:27 PM ET *

What makes sense about Chito fighting OMalley over Merab or Aljo? What made sense about Colby getting a shot over Belal or Shavkat? How about Costa vs. Ikram? Or Strickland vs. Abus? What makes sense about Kelvin Gastelum still being ranked at 185? What made sense about the Korean Zombie getting a title shot off of a win over Dan Ige?  

It's very simple: I could see Khamzat fighting Allen because he'll steamroll him. There is a clear incentive behind putting him in situations where he'll do well because he's a literal cash cow for the promotion. 

I completely agree with you. I didn't say Usman would even take that fight. I just think that's where Whittaker is at this point of his career. I don't think he's really interested in any late opponent change unless it's an opportunity against a former champion and someone as high caliber as Usman. If Costa hilariously pulls out like we're all joking he will, I could see Whittaker just waiting for Cannonier to get healthy. That would be a great fight if the rematch is 5 rounds. 

Until Izzy shares his plans, it's hard to count him in the conversation. There's also no way in hell Izzy is ever agreeing to fight Khamzat unless a belt is on the line though. He might be insanely cringe but he's not dumb. 

Well he has shared his plans, he literally said he’s coming back next year. Izzy doesn’t back down from anyone, he would absolutely take the Khamzat fight; when has he ever openly avoided someone? Also, Khamzat is very much human as we saw against Usman; he’s got a one round gas tank then goes from elite level to a mediocre top 10 level fighter. He needs something big to get him to the title again. Nobody wants a cannonier rematch, he’s 2-1 against Whittaker and a quadrilogy is useless, ddp is fighting for the title, vettori rematch is pointless, and allen/doldize getting an izzy fight is laughably hilarious. Khamzat is the only intriguing person for Izzy to fight 

* Edited at 12.23.2023, 2:55 PM ET *

Kid you don't seem to understand how the UFC does business a Allen fight is big step back for Chimaev and for the promotion. They could have him fighting Adesanya next but sure they are gonna pass on that for a guy who's 7 of last 10 fighst have been on the apex very smart thinking from you.

Pro tip: learn how to use punctuation before calling another person a kid on the internet. 

English not my first language but okay Pro.

He’s not wrong tho. Khamzat just beat Usman and Burns and is a big star, People want to see him in a title Eliminator or title fight. He’s not going down in ranking

Also, who give a **** about person English skills if they’re idea are right, no one like a grammar nazi