Ilia Topuria’s longtime head coach Jorge Climent officially confirmed their mutual farewell ahead of Topria’s opportunity to win the second UFC belt.
Topuria faces Charles Oliveira with the free lightweight title in Las Vegas in the main event of UFC 317 on June 29th. MMA Fighting confirmed earlier this week that Topria, along with his brother UFC Bantamweight Alexandre Topuria, had broken up with the accurate information, Climent Brothers, citing logistic reasons.
“It’s real,” Kriment told Submission Radio. “He lived in Madrid. I have my own project here with my brother… Ilia went to Madrid. He has his own gym in his own home.
“We don’t work together anymore. He goes by himself and we are (ours).”
Climent was with Toplia through his incredibly unbeaten rise in the sport of mixed martial arts, including his victory in the UFC featherweight title against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 in February 2024. Topuria kept the title open in her quest to become a lightweight champion.
The Topuria Brothers are no longer working with Climent Brothers, but the relationship is great and there are no difficult feelings on either side. Climent feels that Topuria will defeat Oliveira in UFC 317 and defeat the other opponents he faces in the future.
“You always feel this isn’t good for sentimental feelings, but this is life,” Kriment explained. “We went with him on a journey, and now he grows, and he wants to fly away, do you know? We’ll go with him (as much as we did).
“I don’t know what we can do in the future. We have our own (the direction we are now) that loves him. We love his brother.
“He’ll always be like our son.”