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UFC Champ Ilia Topuria Boldly Promises Showdown with Legendary Boxer

Ilia Topuria sets his sights high.

Mathew Riddle

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

One of the most vital aspects of an athlete is their mindset, and few are as unshakable as UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria's.

'El Matador's' unwavering self-belief led him to predict his victory over Alexander Volkanovski in February. Now, he's making an even bolder promise: a vow to have his dream fight against Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez.

"I know that [the Canelo fight] is gonna happen," Topuria told Sportskeeda's Andrew Whitelaw on May 21. "I don't think," he elaborated. "I know."

Topuria doesn't have a professional boxing record, but it's not unheard of for an MMA fighter to debut against a boxing champion—consider Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury. However, Alvarez isn't Fury, and he's already turned down a challenge from a previous UFC champion.

Former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman was among the first to attempt to secure a fight with Alvarez. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' made his pitch at the peak of his career but was swiftly dismissed when Alvarez responded with the infamous "Who the f*** is this guy?" routine aimed at him and his manager, Ali Abdelaziz.

Usman was good with the reply, goading Alvarez to "relax... before somebody gets hurt," which was still a fruitless attempt in the end:


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Mathew Riddle

MATHEW RIDDLE

Mathew is a UK-based combat sports journalist  and graphic designer. He joined MMAKO when it was first founded in 2023. Find his work on The Fight Fanatic & Heavy on UFC. He can be contacted on mr@thefightfanatic.com

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