UFC FREEDOM 250
Athletes
Ilia Topuria Excited For Historic Event | UFC Freedom 250
Lightweight Champ Sets The Table For Showdown With Justin Gaethje On Sunday | UFC Freedom 250 Presented by Crypto.com
Ilia Topuria will be the last man to make the walk to the Octagon on Sunday night at UFC Freedom 250, striding out to the South Lawn of the White House for a championship showdown with interim champion Justin Gaethje.
It marks the first defense of the title he won last June at UFC 317 when he knocked out former champion Charles Oliveira midway through the first round to become the 10th individual in UFC history to win titles in two weight classes, and this weekend, he aims to become just the fifth fighter in history to earn successful title defenses in both weight classes.
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“First of all, it’s not gonna be the biggest in UFC history; I think it’s gonna be one of the biggest events in sports history, one of the more memorable ones,” Topuria said. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime, very unique event, and being able to be part of an event like this — especially headlining an event like this —is something I feel very grateful about. I’m very excited for what’s coming.”
Ilia Topuria Fight Week Interview | UFC Freedom 250
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Ilia Topuria Fight Week Interview | UFC Freedom 250
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What’s coming is a chance for the 29-year-old Georgian Spanish standout to further solidify his standing as one of the best fighters on the planet and add to his already sterling resume that includes nine consecutive wins in the UFC, three straight finishes over elite former champions, and a pristine 17-0 record.
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It’s also an opportunity to get a second look at Topuria now that he’s made the transition to lightweight, where the former featherweight champion says he feels far more comfortable.
“It got easier because before I had almost to kill myself to make the weight when I was fighting in the featherweight division,” Topuria said. “Now, for the first time in my life, I’m actually able to enjoy the whole process, enjoy all the moments. It’s still a little bit hard because you never get used to the weight cut, but I don’t have to cut that much. But now it is completely different and very happy.”
While the weight cut is easier, Topuria admitted that being a UFC champion and everything that comes with it has been more difficult than he expected, not that he’s looking to relinquish the title.
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“Yes — it’s more challenging than I was expecting, and I feel that when you have this kind of spot, it gives you a lot of responsibilities,” Topuria said. “At the same time, I prefer to be on this side of the movie than the other one, so yeah, I feel blessed.”
This weekend’s matchup with Gaethje is a different type of battle — at least on paper — than the lightweight titleholder has prepared to engage in before. Though he’s fought elite competition like Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway, and Oliveira, and handled each with a certain amount of ease, none of those former champions brings the same kind of approach and mettle as Gaethje.
Main Event Preview | UFC Freedom 250
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UFC Freedom 250 Presented By Crypto.com
Main Event Preview | UFC Freedom 250
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The American interim champion is a wrecking ball in the Octagon; a tenacious, resilient, and ever-dangerous competitor who was forged in the fire and brandishes a different approach than the last three standouts Topuria has shared the cage with. There are bits of his game that Holloway echoes —the toughness, the durability —but Gaethje drives things home with a greater ferocity than either of the two men the unbeaten standout bested to win and successfully defend the featherweight title and is an entirely different animal than Oliveira.
While Topuria is quick to acknowledge the track record Gaethje brings with him to battle this weekend, he remains ultra-confident that standing across from him is something none of his latest adversaries have previously contended with in their careers.
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“Every fighter is unique — they all have different styles — and he has gone through a lot of wars, a lot of big fights, but as I always say, he never fought with someone like me,” he said. “When I say it, it may sound a little cocky, but at the end of the day, I prove that it’s not.
“My confidence is built on hard work and dedication; this is what I prove in all my fights, and this is what I’m gonna do June 14th.”
The belief in his skills isn’t the part that sounds a little cocky and gets some fans’ hackles up ahead of his fights — it’s his penchant for changing his record on his Instagram page days out from the fight, as if the outcome is preordained. Writing this on Tuesday evening, a check of his account shows him as 18-0, despite his 18th start still being several days away.
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But thus far, no one has been able to prove him wrong — no one has even come close, really — and the undefeated standout believes that if Gaethje takes the approach he’s said he’s going to take on Sunday, it won’t take long for him to officially earn his 18th career win and first successful lightweight title defense.
“My prediction for his fight? If he’s gonna do what he’s saying — that he’s gonna walk forward — I’m gonna finish him in less than two minutes,” Topuria said. “All I need from my opponents is just to have them in front and start to exchange punches, and there is where I’m the best.
“If he’s gonna try to move forward, I’m gonna have half of the job already done, and I’m gonna do the rest of it.”
UFC Freedom 250 presented by Crypto.com and Ram took place live from the White House in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, June 14. See the Official Results, Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!