Ex-UFC Champ Left Speechless by Ilia Topuria's KO of Max Holloway

Aljamain Sterling couldn't believe what he was seeing when Ilia Topuria laid out Max Holloway at UFC 308.

Aljamain Sterling - YouTube

The UFC featherweight division was put on high alert once again at UFC 308.

Following a title-winning performance for the ages against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298, Topuria returned to Abu Dhabi where he defended his belt for the first time against a former champ - the Hawaiian juggernaut Max Holloway, who's never been knocked out in his pro career, until now, that is.

It'd take Topuria three rounds to find the granite chin of Holloway, rattling him with a right hand and a series of strikes against the cage. Topuria put the finishing touches on Holloway, landing a left hook to be the first man to knock down and KO Holloway in 34 professional fights.

Jaws were in fact dropped when Holloway touched the canvas with millions watching around the world, including #9 UFC Featherweight contender Aljamain Sterling.

"Ilia Is a Problem!" Says Stunned Sterling

Not far off from a title fight himself and matched up with Movsar Evloev at UFC 310 after dominating Calvin Kattar, Sterling watched intently as Topuria retained his title in the most brutal of ways.

"Damn!" Sterling wrote on Instagram. "Ilia is a problem! Finishing 2 all-time greats back to back is no joke!"

Max Holloway Releases Tear-Jerking Post Following UFC 308 Loss: 'New Destination'

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A post shared by Aljamain Sterling (@funkmastermma)

Sterling was left speechless, putting his hands on his head as others yelled in reaction to the undefeated Topuria putting out Holloway.

If it wasn't obvious already, Ilia Topuria's going to be a difficult man to beat withhis high-level boxing and expert grappling to go along with it.

At 15-0 with no apparent holes in his game, some suggest a wrestling style like that of "Funkmaster" might work on the UFC Featherweight Champion of the world. But that remains to be seen, as we're still a ways from that fantasy fight with Evloev in front of Sterling and other contenders like Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes at the top of the featherweight heap.

Former UFC Champion Aljamain Sterling. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

A former champ and a strong candidate for the greatest to ever do it in the bantamweight division, Aljamain Sterling has won 10 out of his 11 fights with his only hiccup coming to the recently-dethroned Sean O'Malley last year at UFC 292.

UFC 300: Aljamain Sterling on How He Stacks up With Dominick Cruz as Bantamweight ‘GOAT’ (Exclusive)

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