UFC Lightweight Champion Ilia Topuria looks dominant in the Octagon, but can one strategy halt “El Matador’s” momentum?
Many are wondering what’s next for Topuria after he knocked out Charles Oliveira in the first round of their title fight in June to capture the 155-pound gold. Topuria has already won championships in two different weight classes, and he has done the same with his boxing.
Appears on ‘Know the time’ American Kickboxing Academy head coach Javier Mendez revealed how he thinks a fighter could have success against Topuria (via MMAfighting).
“You should practice your kicks and angles with him,” Mendez said. “Knees. Muay Thai would be a good specialty. But your big job is to keep him away from you, and he can wrestle pretty well. So he also, from people I’ve talked to who train with him, he’s got decent jiu-jitsu as well. So he’s almost the complete package, but he’s not. He’s missing the kicking area.
“So the weakest link with him would be the kicking area. And then you have to test your wrestling on him to see if yours is better than his. We have yet to see how great it is. It’s not great, but we have yet to see how good it really is.”
Topuria is rumored to headline the UFC’s debut pay-per-view event on Paramount+, but nothing has been made official at this time. Many believe Justin Gaethje will get his next crack at the UFC Lightweight Championship. Whether that is actually the UFC’s plan remains to be seen.
Gaethje is known to land some hard leg kicks, but he also often throws caution to the wind. Many believe Topuria would find a way to take down “The Highlight,” but Gaethje is always a threat to any opponent with his power.
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