Edson Barboza-Ilia Topuria Featherweight Battle Booked for UFC’s Oct. 29 Event

A scary-fun Ultimate Fighting Championship scrap is on the books for the event on Halloween weekend.

On Friday, Eurosport Spain broke the news that Edson Barboza (22-11) will be throwing down with Ilia Topuria (12-0) at 145 pounds on Oct. 29. The event, which does not yet have a title or official venue, will be a Fight Night offering that could air either on ESPN+ or one of the main networks, depending on scheduling. This potential featherweight thriller has since been confirmed by multiple outlets. This bout is the first to be officially listed on the Oct. 29 show’s lineup, and it is not expected to serve as the headliner.

Barboza will be looking to right the ship after a pair of defeats to Giga Chikadze and Bryce Mitchell in 2021 and 2022, respectively. The dangerous Brazilian striker dropped down to featherweight in 2020, and dropped a contentious split decision to Dan Ige to start things off. A pair of victories over Makwan Amirkhani and Shane Burgos showed the move might bear fruit, and then he ran into Chikadze to shut down any momentum. Barboza is one of a small number of fighters throughout company history to pocket at least 10 post-fight bonuses, and his eight for “Fight of the Night” are tied with Nate Diaz and Frankie Edgar for the most in company history.

The well-traveled Topuria has yet to taste defeat as a pro, rattling off four wins inside the Octagon since debuting late 2020. Topuria thwarted rising talent Youssef Zalal in that first outing, and three straight knockouts over Youssef Zalal, Ryan Hall and Jai Herbert – the last of those three at lightweight – propelled him into the UFC’s rankings at featherweight. Born in Germany, sporting Georgian nationality and training out of Spain, Topuria celebrates a stellar finish rate of 92%, with all of those stoppages coming within two rounds.

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