Fight Facts: UFC 308 ‘Topuria vs. Holloway’

Fight Facts is a breakdown of all of the interesting information and Octagon oddities on every card, with some puns, references and portmanteaus to keep things fun. These deep stat dives delve into the numbers, providing historical context and telling the stories behind those numbers.

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TOTAL NUMBER OF UFC FIGHTS: 7,906
TOTAL NUMBER OF UFC EVENTS: 710

The Ultimate Fighting Championship cruised into Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Arena with a banger of a card that brought forth a number of competitors that would struggle to get in the U.S. Generally surprising and thrilling, the results of this gala event concluded with plenty of intriguing storylines going forward. UFC 308 featured a one-of-a-kind spinning knockout, a jawbreaking submission and a champ who leapfrogged into “Fighter of the Year” conversations.

With Matching Betting Odds: Six combatants checked into UFC 308 with unbeaten records: Ilia Topuria, Khamzat Chimaev, Lerone Murphy, Sharabutdin Magomedov, Raffael Cerqueira and Farid Basharat. Cerqueira was the only one to check out with a loss.

Good Luck to Anyone Next: Topuria became the fourth fighter in organizational history to successfully defend his featherweight throne. The only undisputed champ in the division’s history to not do so was Conor McGregor.

Few Saw That Coming: The Spaniard of Georgian descent born in Germany kept his spotless record intact at 16-0 by crushing Max Holloway. He lifted his finish rate to 87% with the dominant performance.

Wealth, Fame, Power: Each of the last five outings for Topuria has resulted in an additional bonus check. This includes his one-off outing up at lightweight, where he sparked Jai Herbert in 2022.

It Had to Happen One Day: Holloway’s legendary stretch of 29 straight fights without ever suffering a knockdown or knockout came to an end at the hands of Topuria. No fighter in organizational history comes close to Holloway’s feat.

Hurty for 30: In defeat, Holloway entered into his 30th UFC bout. There have been only 11 athletes in the history of the promotion to fight more times under its banner, with Jim Miller’s 44 reigning supreme.

Not a Feather’s Funeral: By competing on Saturday, Holloway reclaimed the record for the most appearances in UFC featherweight history with his 27th. Elkins recently pulled ahead for a short period, and no other active 145er has more than 23 under their belt.

Rearranging Robert: Chimaev claimed the mightiest win of his career by crushing Robert Whittaker with a face crank. His finish rate of 86% is evenly distributed between submissions and knockouts, with six apiece.

Chimmy Chimmy Ya: In his eighth fight as a member of the UFC roster, Chimaev secured his sixth post-fight bonus. This includes his first three bouts with the company, where he prevailed three times in 66 days and snagged three bonus checks.

Grinding His Way to a Title: Including a draw and a no contest, Magomed Ankalaev advanced his unbeaten streak as a UFC light heavyweight to 13 with a decision over Aleksandar Rakic. The only combatant in the division’s history to exceed that total is Jon Jones, whose stretch from 2010 to 2020 concluded with “Bones” not losing in 18 straight fights.

Murphy’s Law: Murphy needed all three rounds to get past Dan Ige, further pushing his flawless record to 15-0 with a draw. However, six of his eight appearances, including all of his last four, have heard the final bell.

Gritty Ige: Hawaii’s Ige has yet to be finished inside the Octagon, with all eight of his setbacks coming at the hands of the judges. Only 11 men in the history of the league have suffered more losses via decision than Ige, with Jeremy Stephens and Miller tied for the top spot of 12.

He Called It His Double Bullet: S. Magomedov pulled off a first in the promotion by lamping Armen Petrosyan. His double spinning back fists are the first back-to-back strikes to defeat a foe in the Octagon.

Double Back and Twist: Throughout UFC history, 11 fighters had previously used one such spinning fist to get the job done. “Shara Bullet” became the first competitor in the UFC’s middleweight division to finish a fight using a spinning back fist.

A Magomedov Connection: A whole 80% of Magomedov’s wins have taken place courtesy of strikes. The three decisions in his career have come in his last six bouts, having alternated knockouts and wins on the scorecards.

The Lion, the Witch and the Beatdown: It took Ibo Aslan 51 seconds to clobber Cerqueira and force referee Marc Goddard to step in. The knockout rate for the Turkish fighter remains at 100% for violent stoppage.

Knees of Pig Iron: Due to a knee injury, Rafael dos Anjos lost against Geoff Neal. With the technical knockout added to his ledger, “Handz of Steel” has officially finished his opponent in 75% of his victories.

Put Some Rebeck on His Name: After 15 concussive minutes of combat, Mateusz Rebecki had his hand raised against Myktybek Orolbai. The two competed at a 160-pound catchweight, making this the second matchup officially contested outside of weight classes in the promotion this year. The first came between Ige and Diego Lopes at UFC 303.

Abus Is Able: Abusupiyan Magomedov handed Brunno Ferreira a submission loss via arm-triangle choke in the third frame. With half as many subs as knockouts, Magomedov boosted his stoppage rate as a pro to 78%.

Nzice: As Chris Barnett went down with a hamstring injury, Kennedy Nzechukwu finished the job with a knee to the body and follow-up punches. The Fortis MMA-trained Nzechukwu has now scored 69% of his pro wins via knockout.

Le Miserable to Watch: Now elevated to 13-0 with his decision triumph over Victor Hugo, Farid Basharat once more left the fight in the hands of the judges. While he started his career with six finishes in eight appearances, four of his last five have heard the final bell.

Bad Call: By contentious decision, in a fight that all 16 scoring media members scored for Carlos Leal Miranda, Rinat Fakhretdinov picked up the win. The Russian has not tasted defeat in 23 straight outings dating back over a decade, when he lost in the final of a one-night tourney.

Never Say Never Again: Coming into UFC 308, Petrosyan had never dropped consecutive bouts (12 fights), Cerqueira had never been beaten (11 fights) and Ferreira had never been submitted (13 fights).

Can Be Crunched: On 18 separate occasions, Whittaker has chosen “Can’t Be Touched” by Roy Jones Jr.-helmed rap group Body Head Bangerz. “Bobby Knuckles” suffered a rare defeat, with his win percentage falling to .833 when accompanied by it.

Top-Tier Soundtrack: Rakic selected “War” from the “Rocky IV” soundtrack by Vince DiCola as his walkout music. His pick of this tune makes it the seventh song selected from this iconic 10-track soundtrack in UFC history, with him the first to select this one.