A trilogy bout between featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway is set for March, with bantamweight belt-holders Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan also poised to meet on the same card.
ESPN reported early on Thursday confirmation from UFC president Dana White that the two championship bouts would take place at UFC 272, although the report added that contracts have yet to be signed. The event, the third pay-per-view card of the year, is likely to be staged at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Volkanovski, 10-0 in the UFC, first won the featherweight crown from Holloway via unanimous decision in December 2019, before the Australian prevailed again by a contentious split decision in the rematch in Abu Dhabi the following July. That bout was part of UFC 251, the first event of the inaugural Fight Island series in the capital.
Volkanovski, 33, has since defended his crown once more, triumphing on points in the Fight of the Year contender against Brian Ortega in September. Holloway, the division’s No 1-ranked contender, has won twice since losing to Volkanovski, dominating Calvin Kattar in Abu Dhabi last January and then defeating Yair Rodriguez on points in Las Vegas in November.
Holloway dominates Kattar in Abu Dhabi
Volkanovski has won his past 20 professional mixed martial arts bouts and boasts a 23-1 record, while Holloway’s pro career stands at 23-6.
Meanwhile, Sterling and Yan will finally face off after their October rematch in Abu Dhabi was postponed because the former had not fully recovered from a neck injury. The pair first met in March last year, when then-champion Yan was disqualified in the fourth round for an intentional illegal knee.
Yan, who captured the bantamweight title at UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi, eventually fought Cory Sandhagen for the interim belt at UFC 267 at Etihad Arena, coming through via unanimous decision. Yan’s pro record reads 16-2 – his loss to Sterling marked his first defeat in 11 bouts – with his American rival's resume at 20-3.
