UFC fans have been reacting after featherweight contender Ilia Topuria claimed that he would finish Alexander Volkanovski in the first round.
Topuria currently sits at No.5 in the 145lb rankings and earned the biggest win of his career when he defeated Josh Emmett via unanimous decision back in June. The win extended ‘El Matador’s undefeated record to 14-0, with six of those victories coming under the UFC banner.
The 26-year-old is now expected to face Volkanovski next, with the pair ramping up the expectations of their future fight when they faced-off following the Australian’s win over Yair Rodriguez at UFC 290.
Ilia Topuria has since caused a stir amongst MMA fans, after stating the he expects to finish Volkanovski. Courtesy of @MMAUNCENSORED1, the Georgian fighter said:
“So I’m the next guy…I’m going to finish Volkanovski in the first round.”
Fans have reacted to Topuria’s bold claim, considering Alexander Volkanovski hasn’t been finished since 2013. One fan even hilariously wrote that ‘El Matador’ should be drug tested. They said:
“Drug test that man……”
Another fan stated that it is unlikely Topuria finishes Volkanovski, considering he was unable to stop Josh Emmett:
“If he couldn’t finish Emmett how’s he finishing volk in the first?”
X user @xFunteralThirstx added:
“Who knew, he’s an MMA fighter and a comedian”
Check out more reactions below:
Sean O’Malley claims he can knockout Alexander Volkanovski
Sean O’Malley has alluded to a potential move up to featherweight after claiming he could finish Alexander Volkanovski.
O’Malley was crowned the bantamweight champion after knocking out Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292. Despite not yet having a title defence under his name, ‘Sugar’ has revealed he’s already planning on fighting Volkanovski for the 145lb strap.
Speaking on the latest episode of the The BrO’Malley Show, Sean O’Malley discussed his desire to achieve double champ status. ‘Sugar’ claimed that he “100%” believes he has the power and skillset to KO Volkanovski, but did admit it could be the toughest fight of his career. He said:
“I’m not saying I wouldn’t fight Volk, I’m just being very honest. He would be a very, very difficult fight. Do I believe I could knock him out? 100%. I believe I can knock out anybody around 135, 145 [pounds]. 155, that’d be a little tougher, I’d need to put on some [weight]. But Volk is a very difficult fight, I’m not saying I would never fight him. I’m just saying that’s not what I want next. I don’t know, maybe a year, maybe two years.”
Catch Sean O’Malley’s comments regarding Alexander Volkanovski here (44:50):