One of Ilia Topuria’s former foes would back him to beat prime Conor McGregor as long as he were to do thing.
Topuria has been following in the footsteps of McGregor since arriving in the UFC, first by enjoying an undefeated run all the way to the featherweight title and then by adding the lightweight gold to his trophy cabinet.
In the main event of UFC 317, Topuria knocked out Charles Oliveira to join the elite club of two-division champions in MMA’s leading promotion. And that result sparked further comparisons between ‘El Matador’ and ‘The Notorious’, as well as talk of a fantasy fight.
Despite Topuria’s brutal three-fight run of knockouts against former champions, many believe the Irishman in his prime was a superior striker. And one of the champ’s ex-rivals seemingly believes the same, given where he sees Topuria’s path to victory…
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Youssef Zalal says Ilia Topuria vs Conor McGregor would come down to one thing
Youssef Zalal was the first man to survive Topuria’s devastating power and finish capabilities, as he gave the Spaniard just about all he could handle back in 2020.
The Moroccan featherweight was recently interviewed by Fight Bananas and became the latest to give their take on a fantasy clash between Topuria and prime McGregor.
While Topuria’s success thus far has largely centered around his boxing skills, Zalal thinks he would need to wrestle to get the better of the Dublin native during his best years at 145 pounds.
“That’s a tough question,” Zalal said.
“If Ilia uses wrestling, Ilia wins.
“Just because the range that Conor brought in his prime was ridiculous,” Zalal continued. “Unless you’re Khabib (Nurmagomedov) and you go rush him, then you win.
“You’ve gotta come in with some heat to (win) that one.”
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Youssef Zalal will face the only other man to survive Ilia Topuria next
While Zalal gave Topuria his toughest test in the Spaniard’s debut, he is not the only man to reach the scorecards against him.
Almost three years later, ‘El Matador’ headlined a UFC event for the first time in Jacksonville. In the fight that ultimately proved to be the one that secured him a title shot, Topuria dominated Josh Emmett for five rounds straight.
Unlike the Zalal fight, Emmett was far from competitive against the then-future champ, as he fell to 50-45, 50-42, and 49-45 scorecards.
Now, the two men to have survived Topuria’s power will meet themselves. Emmett and Zalal will fight at UFC 320, as they do battle on the undercard of Magomed Ankalaev vs Alex Pereira 2.