UFC 312 might not be the best card in the world, but there’s certainly plenty of preliminary action to get excited about before the two title fights top the bill Down Under.
Specifically, MMA fans are counting down to the promotional debut of one Aleksandre ‘El Conquistador’ Topuria – older brother of undefeated featherweight champion, Ilia Topuria.
The elder Topuria enters the UFC with a professional record of 5-1 and has now revealed that it was ‘El Matador’ who pushed him to join him on the roster after initially planning a slower rise to superstardom.
Aleksandre Topuria wasn’t originally planning to enter UFC this early
Aleksandre Topuria made his professional MMA debut in 2015 and now enters the UFC with a record of 5-1, including two submission wins and three first-round knockouts.
Whilst fans are delighted to see a second Topuria on the roster, many have questioned whether he’s ready for the big leagues as it’s rare to see an athlete signing to the promotion with such a thin record.
According to Aleksandre, the original plan was for him to take a couple more fights on the regional scene in Spain before making his big-money move to the UFC; and it was only when Ilia became UFC champion that the blueprint changed.
“My plans were very different, I didn’t want to fight as a 5-1 [fighter] in the UFC, that’s the truth,” he told Shak MMA ahead of his promotional debut this weekend.
“I actually had a fight [scheduled] outside the UFC but then my brother gets the call to fight Alexander Volkanovski, and I was coaching my brother – all this time, I was coaching him. I didn’t want to be selfish and fight for mine, having my brother fighting for the belt.
“We keep it together, we got the job done, we take the belt so after that, I still wanted to follow my plans to have some other fights outside the UFC… But for sure Ilia my brother, he becomes UFC champion, and he saw what I did for him – he says ‘Okay, now I will push for him [to be signed]’.”
His last fight was back in May 2023, but after Ilia Topuria claimed UFC gold in sensational style, Aleksandre was forced to have some serious conversations about his future – either as a coach, or as a fighter.
“When I got the contract and the chance [to fight in the UFC], I had some conversation with myself, and I say ‘I have two choices… I say no, reject the UFC contract and keep fighting outside the UFC… Or I sign the contract, and I fight directly with the best guys in the world and see how good I am.’
“That was the reason [for the layoff], but more money, more hype, more everything – so why not I say, why be stupid and say no?”
Aleksandre Topuria on the ‘pressure’ of being Ilia Topuria’s older brother
The 5-1 newcomer says he doesn’t feel any pressure fighting as he attempts to follow in his siblings’ footsteps: only when he’s coaching Ilia Topuria for his own fights.
“Listen, I don’t feel any pressure as a fighter, [but] do you know where I do feel pressure? I feel pressure when I have to stay with him and show him the correct things he has to do… He knows what he has to do but when you’re coaching, [especially] when he wants me in this position… There’s a lot of responsibility.
“I feel pressure in that moment but right now, he’s feeling the pressure – I don’t feel any pressure, I have to go inside the cage and enjoy fighting, I enjoy every moment… When he’s with me, I feel more strength, not pressure.”
Aleksandre, who remains as self-confident as his sibling, laughed as he noted that the roles will be reversed at UFC 312 this weekend.
“When he goes inside [the cage] and I stay outside, I feel pressure because I cannot do anything, I can just talk – that’s the real pressure. The pressure’s going to stay outside with him, not with me.”
Aleksandre Topuria faces Australian newcomer and teammate of Alexander Volkanovski, Colby ‘Sickness’ Thicknesse on the prelim opener of UFC 312: Du Plessis vs Strickland 2.