Ilia Topuria decided to go to lightweight after destroying one of the best grapplers in his division.
Too comparable to Conor McGregor, the former UFC-Fedweight Champion left 145 pounds on a perfect 7-0 with two title victories on Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway.
Ilia Topuria, 28, will try to pick up a second belt on 155 pounds with its next fight still not confirmed for UFC 317, which could be champion Islam Makhakev, Charles Oliveira or someone else on 28 June on 28 June.
Makhachev and Oliveira both known for their incredible wrestling, Topuria has previously passed a jiu-jitsu-wizard-no one else wanted to fight in the featherweight division.
Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Ilia Topuria hammered Ryan Hall to Canvas for his first UFC loss
On UFC 264 in July 2021, Conor McGregor broke his leg against Dustin Poirier in the same night, a 10-0 Topuria would fight for the last time against an 8-1 Ryan Hall on the preliminary rounds against an 8-1 Ryan Hall.
Hall, 'The winner of the ultimate Fighter 22', had won four consecutive fights in the UFC and was wearing a lot of hype because of its wrestling references, Imanari Rolls and Signature HOLT HOOK entry.
Hall tapped four hunters with a heel hook in the opening round, including former UFC champion BJ Penn. A grappler of the highest order, Hall struggled to find opponents who would draw on the dotted line – that was until colleague Bogeyman Topuria came by.
Hall tried against a dangerous striker and tried several Imanari buns on Topuria and tried to confuse his legs for a heel hook without result. Topuria skillfully threw the Hall gripping attempts and held the fight on the feet.
Topuria tagged Hall with punches while the 'Tuf' champion went on with his uncomfortable strategy while rolling to legs and landed back a few spinning.
After a missed staircase, Topuria Hall followed to the floor where he rained several shots. Unable to escape with his right arm caught through the head of Topuria, Hall was brutally eliminated in his career for the first time.
Ilia Topuria almost lost his 0 in lightweight fight immediately afterwards
Ilia Topuria improved to 11-0 with his Ko by Ryan Hall on UFC 264, which showed that he was upstairs.
In his next fight, Topuria opted for a one-off fight at Lightweight, where he took on Jai Herbert, an opponent who had an 8-inch reach benefit on him.
Less than a minute in the opening round, Topuria was knocked down by a head kick and he immediately dived before Herbert's legs while trying to survive.
Topuria was able to find his bearings while he bounced back against Herbert with a thunderous second round knocked out to keep his undefeated record intact.
The fight against Jai Herbert is concerned about how the 5'7 ″ Ilia Topuria will do it at lightweight, but the former champion is not a shortage of trust that both Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway have eliminated at 145 pounds, the only hunter who does this.
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