Josh Emmett reveals who he gives slight edge to for Alex Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria: “It’s hard for me to bet against …”

By Fernando Quiles - January 7, 2024

Josh Emmett doesn’t consider himself to be a modern day Nostradamus, but he does know who he’s leaning towards picking for the UFC 298 main event.

Josh Emmett Alex Volkanovski Ilia Topuria

Headlining that planned February 17 pay-per-view will be reigning UFC featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski. He’ll be putting his gold at stake against undefeated challenger Ilia Topuria. It’s a tough fight to call between a dominant champion, who is coming off a devastating KO loss to lightweight titleholder Islam Makhachev, and the rising Topuria. As it stands now, Volkanovski is the -155 betting favorite, while Topuria is a +130 underdog, per DraftKings Sportsbook.

RELATED: ALEXANDER VOLKANOVSKI FEELS ILIA TOPURIA MAY HAVE BEEN “RUSHED” INTO UFC 298 TITLE FIGHT: “I JUST HAVEN’T SEEN THAT ELITE STUFF YET”

Josh Emmett Assesses Alex Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria

Fresh off a brutal one-punch KO win over Bryce Mitchell, Josh Emmett appeared on the JAXXON Podcast. During the show, Emmett admitted it’s difficult to predict Alex Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria. With that said, he’s leaning towards picking someone (h/t MMAJunkie).

“It’s hard for me to predict fights, but I can argue how both guys get it done,” Emmett said. “Volk is one of the pound-for-pound best. He continues to improve and kind of prove people wrong, as well. It’s always like the fight, like OK, ‘He’s going to lose now.’ But then he finally got to the point where he’s earned people’s respect.

“But Ilia’s young, he’s hungry, he’s talented. I know he’s been saying a lot of stuff, like how he’s going to go out there and finish him in the first round and stuff like that. Hopefully he’s not overlooking him. I don’t think he is. I think that’s just kind of a part of his persona. I don’t know. It’s hard for me to bet against such a dominant champion.”

Time will tell if Emmett’s hunch is correct.


Topics:

Alex Volkanovski Ilia Topuria Josh Emmett