A lot has been made of Ilia Topuria’s pre-fight challenge to Max Holloway.

Featherweight champion Topuria has made no bones of his intention to attempt to draw Holloway in to a firefight in the opening seconds of their UFC 308 main event on Saturday night in Abu Dhabi. The Georgian-Spaniard has repeatedly claimed he intends to point to the canvas in the early stages of the contest in a move that would resemble Holloway’s similar move earlier this year in his fight with Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 in April; a development which ultimately left Gaethje face-first on the canvas as the final bell rang in their five-round war.

But while Holloway told the media in Abu Dhabi earlier this week that such moments have to be ‘earned,’ Topuria reiterated his request in Thursday’s presser. Check out the video below, with the exchange coming just after the 17-minute mark.

–