As the date approaches, excitement is intensifying for the featherweight championship fight between Ilia Topuria and Max Holloway. The highly anticipated bout is set for Oct. 26, coinciding with the match between Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Topuria, a passionate Real Madrid supporter, found himself in a playful exchange with Holloway after the Hawaiian fighter received a custom Barcelona jersey.
During an ESPN MMA interview, Holloway jokingly predicted victories for both himself and the Catalan team:
"Yeah, I got gifted from Barcelona, and they gave me the number 9 for striker... So I guess Barcelona go 2 and 0 Saturday night."
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Topuria couldn’t resist firing back when he heard of Holloway’s new Barcelona allegiance. In his interview with ESPN, the champion said:
"He was wearing the Barcelona jersey? Oh, he declared himself a loser... he's going to lose."
Check out the reactions from Max Holloway and Ilia Topuria below:
The UFC 308 fight will overlap with the final minutes of El Clasico, making October 26 a high-stakes day for both MMA and football fans.
Ilia Topuria expressed disappointment at La Liga Chief Javier Tebas over El Clasico scheduling
UFC featherweight contender Ilia Topuria has taken aim at La Liga president Javier Tebas over the scheduling of El Clasico. During an interview with ESPN, Topuria expressed his disappointment about the scheduling conflict, jokingly suggesting:
"Let's see if I've made a mistake and instead of knocking out Holloway, I have to knock out the person responsible for putting that match at the same time and on the same day as my fight."
When informed by a journalist that Javier Tebas was the man behind the decision, Topuria humorously added:
"Then we will go for Javier Tebas. He’s next.” [H/t: Goal]
Tebas later responded to the featherweight champ's comments.