Ilia Topuria believes Paddy Pimblett did what he needed to do with lower-level fighters in his UFC 314 victory.
Pinblet ruled and eventually stopped Michael Chandler in the third round in the joint main event from Miami, improving to 7-0 within the octagon. Topuria and Pimblett date back several years ago, Joe Rogan’s experienceTopuria responded to the performance.
“He did a great job,” Topreat said of Pinblett. “He did what he had to do, but for me… I’ll be totally honest with you. To me, Chandler, he wasn’t an extraordinary fighter. He was like an average level fighter.
“So he defeated Dan Hooker and Tony Ferguson.
Topuria was the focus of UFC 314 after officially vacating the featherweight title won by Alexander Volkanovski in the main event with Diego Lopes. The undefeated Topuria has moved to light weight and is hoping to face Islamic Makachev to win the 155 pound title in his next match.
As far as Chandler is concerned, Topria realizes that the former Bellator champion has a fan-friendly style, but that’s not all about the greatness of the sport.
“At the end of the day, we see war,” Topria said. “It’s a very competitive battle. You almost see the bar fight. You see two guys trading punches in the middle of the octagon, but you see no technique. You see no skill.
“You’ll see a great fight, because as a fan, it’s so much fun to see a fight like that. But if you’re really thinking about it, you won’t see the skills in that fight. You’ll never see the people who try to get you down, try to control you, some great submissions, great transitions, strikes – looking for a combination, looking for someone looking for his moment, create space…
“It’s just a wild dog…it’s cool. You need someone like him.