The UFC has confirmed the main card for UFC 298, with Anthony Hernandez now facing Roman Kopylov after Ikram Aliskerov was forced off the card, and the headlining fight being a featherweight title bout between Alexander Volkanovski and Ilia Topuria.
UFC 298’s main card got confirmed this Saturday. But hey, there’s a twist!
Anthony Hernandez, originally slated to face Ikram Aliskerov, is now up against Roman Kopylov. Why, you ask? Aliskerov had to step down. MMA Fighting confirmed this after UFC’s initial announcement.
So, where’s all this action happening? UFC 298 is set for Feb. 17 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. You can catch the main card live on ESPN+ pay-per-view. And the prelims? They’re on ESPN and ESPN+.
The main event? Still the same. Alexander Volkanovski and Ilia Topuria are headlining the winter card. It’s a featherweight title fight, folks. Volkanovski is coming off a knockout loss to lightweight champ Islam Makhachev. He’s looking for redemption in a short-notice rematch against the Russian champ at UFC 294. Topuria, on the other hand, is on a roll. Undefeated, with 14 straight wins. Six of ’em in the octagon.
And the co-main event? It’s a middleweight rebooking. Ex-champ Robert Whittaker is set to face Paulo Costa. They were supposed to meet at UFC 294, but Costa had to pull out due to a severe illness.
So, here’s the full main card for UFC 298: