Not long now.

On Saturday night, the UFC will return to Abu Dhabi for the organisation’s 20th event in the United Arab Emirates capital — and they have stacked the deck for one of the final numbered events of 2024.

In the main event, the unbeaten featherweight champion Ilia Topuria will seek to defend his 145-pound title for the first time since winning it earlier this year from Alexander Volkanovski when he takes on the former champion (and recently-crowned UFC ‘BMF’) Max Holloway in a fight that promises to be one of the most intriguing title fights of the year.

In the co-main, there is equal intrigue for Khamzat Chimaev’s return to the cage for the first time in a year in what is being suggested as the biggest test of his unbeaten career in the former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker — who has lost to only two men over the course of the past decade.

Elsewhere, Magomed Ankalaev will look to nail down his status as the clear number one contender to Alex Pereira’s 205-pound crown in a battle with the Austrian fighter Aleksandar Rakic.

UFC 308 kicks off late Saturday night (or Sunday morning depending on your timezone) from the 18,000-capacity Etihad Arena.