Max Holloway has said the fact Ilia Topuria has a victory over Alexander Volkanovski while he has three defeats to the Australian will have no bearing on their fight when they headline UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi next month.
Topuria ended the four-year reign of featherweight champion Volkanovski last October, rendering him unconscious in two rounds to win a UFC title in only his 15th pro bout.
Volkanovski took that fight after suffering back-to-back defeats to lightweight champion and pound-for-pound king Islam Makhachev, the second on just 11 days notice at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi last October.
American Holloway had three cracks at Volkanovski from 2019 to 2022 – the second of which took place in Abu Dhabi – taking him the distance in each contest but ultimately losing all by decision. Holloway (26-7) fights in Abu Dhabi for the third time having also previously fought Calvin Kattar in 2021.
The Georgian-Spaniard will look to extend his unbeaten run against former 145-pound champion Holloway when they meet at the Etihad Arena on Yas Island on October 26, but the American says their respective records against Volkanovski will have no bearing on the outcome.
“Bro, I’d be lying to you if I said he wasn’t good. He beat a guy that I had three cracks at and couldn’t figure out. He went in there one time [and won]," Holloway said in an interview aired on ESPN.
“A lot of guys are going to say, ‘That was a hurt [Volkanoski],’ and I understand, but Volk felt like he was good enough to go in there, and Ilia did what he did. He still had to do what he do."
No 2-contender Holloway rides a three-fight win streak since losing to Volkanovski for a third time in July 2022, beating Arnold Allen and the 'Korean Zombie' Jung Chan-sung before recording a spectacular knockout of Justin Gaethje in the final second to claim the BMF title in April.
The Hawaiian native wracked up wins over the likes of Charles Oliveira, Jeremy Stephens and Anthony Pettis on his way to winning the UFC featherweight title in 2017 when he beat legendary Brazilian Jose Aldo, going on to defend the title three times before losing to Volkanovski in their first meeting in 2019.
“Even when we talk about the road to the title, if we compare our records of his road to the title and my road to the title with strengths of opponents and stuff, like how strong or whatever rank it is, it is what it is. People are gonna say, ‘He had an easier path’, but he still had to win and he still did it, he still won, he still is the champion.
“He is a great fighter. You’d be dumb to not think that he is. He’s got power, he’s got speed, but he never fought me yet. That’s the beautiful thing.
“He thinks he knows something. I see him say he’s going to be the first one to, ‘put me out’ and blah, blah.
“If that’s what you need to get yourself to the fight, please keep telling yourself that all the way to October 26. When we get in the octagon, and that cage closes, we get to find out. All this he said, she said stuff, is going to go out the window. We get to find out who’s going to be the champion after that night.”
If you go
Flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.
The stay
Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.
Dubai World Cup factbox
Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)
Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)
Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)
Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)
Wenger's Arsenal reign in numbers
1,228 - games at the helm, ahead of Sunday's Premier League fixture against West Ham United.
704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
7 - FA Cup triumphs, with three of those having come the last four seasons.
151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
'Panga'
Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta
Rating: 3.5/5
