UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria shared his prediction for the upcoming rematch between Conor McGregor and Max Holloway at UFC 329.
Topuria is set to face Justin Gaethje in a lightweight title unification bout in the headliner of June’s UFC Freedom 250 card at the White House. Then, at UFC 329 in July, McGregor battles Holloway in a rematch between two longtime rivals. These are the two biggest fights of the summer on the UFC calendar, no doubt about it.
Ilia Topuria Shares Prediction for Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway 2
Speaking to Carlos Legaspi of ESPN Deportes, Topuria was asked to share his prediction for McGregor vs. Holloway 2. His answer was somewhat surprising.
“It’s going to be a stand-up fight. It’s going to be a fight, I think, of purely striking, where we will not see any wrestling or ground game,” Topuria said. “They are going to hit each other like two kittens. They will be touching each other, marauding, but I think Conor is going to win, as they fought once and he won before. This time, he must beat him. He has to beat him. In fact, I believe that, if you ask me who I want to win, the one who suits me best to win is Conor, because if he wins, and then he has one more fight, we could end up fighting.”
As far as Topuria goes, McGregor’s return is a great thing for the sport of MMA since he is such a big star, even though, in the champ’s opinion, McGregor is not the fighter that he once was.
“Conor is good for the sport in my opinion. I personally think that he is good for the sport because many people want to see him fighting, and I recognize that he is one of the biggest stars in the UFC. Conor, I consider him one of the biggest stars, but it kinds of has its pros and cons. He is in decline, and he is the only one getting something there, no longer to the UFC, it’s him.” Topuria said.
Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway 2 Betting Odds
The latest betting odds for McGregor vs. Holloway 2 have Holloway listed as a -355 betting favorite and McGregor as a +290 betting underdog. This fight is still nearly two months away, so there will surely be lots of betting action from now until then that changes the line somewhat. But at this point, it seems clear that McGregor will enter the fight against Holloway as the underdog.
Given Holloway is younger, has been far more active, and has better cardio, it makes sense that he is the favorite. But McGregor has more pure knockout power, and he’s more used to fighting at 170 lbs, so he has some advantages, as well. Regardless of who wins, it’s going to be an awesome fight, and the return of “The Mac” is going to be one of the biggest combat sports events this summer when he rematches “Blessed” at UFC 329, and July 11 can’t come soon enough.
Ilia Topuria Predicts Conor McGregor vs. Max Holloway 2