Ilia Topuria admits Islam Makhachev is a "tough fighter" but not enough to make him doubt a KO or submission win: "I don't see anything special"
Ilia Topuria is in hot pursuit of a UFC lightweight title fight with Islam Makhachev. During a recent interview with Hard News that has been shared on X/Twitter, the Spaniard shared his thoughts on Makhachev as an opponent. While he acknowledges the champion as a great fighter, he still sees no threat.
In fact, Topuria is still holding on to the belief that he can either knock out or submit Makhachev, despite the significant difference in size between the pair. He sees nothing in Makhachev that separates him from the rest of the UFC roster, and he aims to prove that once he secures the matchup.
"I just feel that I'm better than him anywhere, and he is a great fighter, he has great wrestling. For me personally, I don't see anything special about him in the striking. In the ground, he's a good fighter, he's tough, he's strong. He seems really strong. He's tough. Islam's very tough, but at the same time, I don't know what could make me doubt myself that I won't knock him out or submit him."
Check out Ilia Topuria's thoughts on Islam Makhachev as a fighter (0:48):
The matchup between the pair had caught the imagination of MMA fans after 'El Matador' annihilated Alexander Volkanovski within two rounds to capture featherweight gold. Interest in a bout with Makahchev was further heightened after the Spaniard's knockout of Max Holloway.
Holloway had never been knocked out in his career up until that point. In fact, it was even debatable whether he had ever been knocked down. But Topuria has made a career of defying the odds and is determined to face Makhachev, even vacating his featherweight title to move up to lightweight, where he previously fought.
Ilia Topuria's manager reveals reason behind his move to lightweight
In a recent interview with veteran combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani, Ilia Topuria's manager, Malki Kawa, detailed one of the reasons behind his client's decision to fully commit to a lightweight move. According to him, it came down to Topuria's views on his longevity in the sport.
"If you're cutting all that weight, and what you're basically also doing is taking years off your fighting life, and so this guy is looking at longevity. He's looking at the fact that it's almost a 50-pound cut every time. It's time to move up to 155. I'm confident that Islam will accept it. I'm confident that we'll be fighting for that belt, but it's really not on us. It's on them."
Check out Ilia Topuria's manager talking about his lightweight move (1:36):
Given that Topuria is willing to give up his featherweight championship status, his confidence has to be sky-high against Makhachev.