At UFC 298, Ilia Topuria dethroned the long-reigning Alexander Volkanovski via a KO in the second round to become the new champion. He made his first title defense against Max Holloway at UFC 308 ...

Instead of holding out hope for the undisputed title fight and a title eliminator booked between Arman Tsarukyan and Charles Oliveira, Gaethje would take on Max Holloway the same night at UFC 300.