Ilia Topuria Believes He’s Next in Line for UFC Featherweight Title Shot

Ilia Topuria lived up to the hype at UFC on ABC 5.

“El Matador” was absolutely dominant against former interim title challenger Josh Emmett, battering his foe with crisp combinations and damaging low kicks while evading many of his opponent’s return offerings in a lopsided unanimous decision triumph on Saturday in Jacksonville, Florida. Topuria was dominant enough to earn scorecards of 50-44 and 50-42 as he earned his sixth consecutive triumph within the Las Vegas-based promotion.

If Topuria were to face reigning champion Alexander Volkanovski, he is confident the result would be the same.

“I showed it tonight that no one can match my level of skill inside the cage,” Topuria said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference. “I think everyone agrees with me. I know that I can finish anyone in this division. Just it was tough tonight. But I beat him pretty easy. It’s not going to be different with Alex. The recipe is going to be the same. I’m going to knock him out in the first round, second round. If not, I’m going to dominate him for five rounds, no problem.”

Volkanovski is scheduled to defend his 145-pound belt against Yair Rodriguez in the UFC 291 main event on July 8. Topuria revealed that there’s only one potential matchup and location that would convince him to bypass waiting for the title opportunity he feels he deserves.

“I’m the next guy in the line,” said Topuria, who plans on attending UFC 291 to witness Volkanovski vs. Rodriguez. “I can wait. One of the best skills that I have is the patience. If they offer me to fight with Max Holloway in Spain, let’s do it. If not, I’m going to wait for my title fight. That’s all.”

Topuria’s star is rising after Saturday’s victory, and his success makes it more likely that all of his goals are within reach.

“One of the dreams I had was to become a UFC world champion and to bring the UFC to Spain,” Topuria said. “It’s going to be something huge for me to make my dreams reality, because that’s one of the dreams I had and I have.”