On the eve of UFC 298, both Ilia Topuria and Alexander Volkanovski have attracted attention with the offensive offers. As the one who has kept the championship in the past 5 years, Volkanovski confirmed that his opponent was young, but inexperienced and will soon receive defeat.
However, the confrontation at UFC 298 showed the completely opposite truth. Topuria is less than Volkanovski, but is much more calm than in the opposite phase. Right from the beginning of the first half, Topuria did not overflow, but slowly probed and tried to counterattack against the opponent.
Volkanovski attacked Topuria early, but at the time in the middle of the first half, he suddenly stopped when he had to receive a low kick with a very heavy force. That facilitates Topuria to counterattack with right punches. Volkanovski tries to maintain the advantage until the end of the first half with striking attacks.
Entering the second half, Topuria decided to accelerate the pace of the match. He put up to the Volkanovski, and launched many blow combinations between right punches and left hooks. Volkanovski was put into a cage wall and had to find a way out. It was also when Topuria found an opportunity.
At the end of the second half, in a situation where Volkanovski was put into the cage wall, Topuria had a very heavy hook hit into the head of the champion. This blow caused Volkanovski to quickly fall. The referee immediately intervened when he saw Volkanovski stunned, and recognized the victory for Topuria.
After 5 years, Volkanovski's empire in the Featherweight scale was broken. The person who does this is a very young boxer, and can maintain his career for many years to come. Topuria also shows that he can do exactly what he declared: winning the knock-out against Volkanovski.