Ilia Topuria suffered the ignominy of walking out the winner of a title fight but without the belt to call his own.
The Georgian fighter is one of the most impressive in the UFC, remaining undefeated throughout his career so far.
Ilia Topuria vacated the UFC Featherweight title to make the jump up to Lightweight, and is set to challenge Charles Oliveira for the vacant UFC Lightweight belt at UFC 317.
However, he will have to make sure he makes weight for that fight, or Topuria could suffer the same fate as when he challenged for another vacant title in Cage Warriors early in his career.
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Ilia Topuria missed weight before winning a Cage Warriors title fight
One of Topuria’s most impressive wins was in a title fight where he didn’t even walk away with the belt, thanks to his struggle to make weight.
At the Cage Warriors 94 event in June 2018, Topuria took on Brian Bouland in a match for the vacant Cage Warriors Bantamweight challenge in a highly anticipated bout in Antwerp, Belgium.
The belt had previously been held by Nathaniel Wood, but the Englishman was forced to vacate the title after signing for the UFC in April 2018.
Two years before making his UFC debut, Topuria struggled to get down to the 135 lb weight limit for the Bantamweight division. The Georgian usually fought at 145 lbs, so dropping an extra ten lbs was always going to be tough.
Sadly, he didn’t manage it. Topuria weighed in at nearly 5 lbs overweight, coming in at 139.4 lb. The fight wasn’t cancelled, and the title was still on the line, but only Bouland was eligible to take the title if he won the match.
Despite missing out on his chance to become champion, Topuria didn’t let the title disappointment stop him.
It took him less than two minutes to mount the back of Bouland before locking in an anaconda choke, knocking the Frenchman out cold in the first round in a brutal scene in the octagon.
Despite winning the fight with a clinical victory, Topuria’s missed weight meant that he couldn’t take the Cage Warriors Bantamweight title, and the belt remained vacant until Jack Shore won it in Cardiff later that year.
Ilia Topuria has gone to #3 in the pound-for-pound rankings after Jon Jones’ retirement
Following Jon Jones’ retirement from MMA, Topuria has jumped up to become the #3 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC.
Jones was the #3 ranked pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC and is viewed as one of the greatest heavyweight champions the sport has ever seen.
However, his retirement allowed Khamzat Chimaev to enter the rankings at #15, while Topuria takes over “Bones” third spot.
A win over Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 could help propel Topuria into the top spot, although he will find it hard to overtake former UFC Lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.