Former UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria was already a strong striker, but now he’s transitioning to 155, he predicts Topuria is heading towards a game-changing level.
“You’re going to meet me at 155 I’m trying to touch someone and I’m going to get rid of his light,” Topuria said. Joe Logan experience. “I don’t need to touch his chin. I just touch his head and it explodes.
“I’m very powerful in that weight class and very stable on the ground. Want to wrestle? Let’s fight. No problem. And I have a gas tank for five days instead of five rounds.”
Topuria vacated the featherweight title in place of a move to the UFC’s loaded 155-pound division. The undefeated fighter knocked out Alexander Volkanovsky to acquire the belt at UFC 298 in February 2024, then defended it by becoming the first fighter to stop Max Holloway on a strike at UFC 308 in October.
The permanent move in the weight class is a new challenge for Topuria, and when asked if there are fighters competing in the wrong weight class, Topuria says it is about individual needs and circumstances.
“It depends: some of them, yes. some of them, no,” explained Topuria. “I think there are people who are as small as Jose Aldo, who are fighting for 145, who can fight for 135. But at the same time, he has been a world champion for a long time and one of the best.