UFC Featherweight Champion Ilia Topuria Makes Ridiculous Claim About Max Holloway

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On an absolutely loaded card at UFC 300, no fighter made a bigger impact than Max Holloway.

The former featherweight champion completely dominated Justin Gaethje over five rounds before finishing the fight with an incredible knockout as time expired.

The standout performance impressed everyone in attendance and watching at home. Thai is, everyone except reigning featherweight champ Ilia Topuria.

Topuria sat ringside for the fight and looked plenty impressed when Holloway finished the fight. But his comments since said otherwise.

“Well, it was good. Nothing special to be honest,” Topuria said of the victory. “The ending was only an exchange of punches without any strategy. Both just throwing punches. Zero defense, hands down, and that kind of things can happen but that is something that would never happen with me because I think inside the octagon.

“[Holloway] was talking a lot during the week. It’s normal. It is what he has to do. He needs to believe he is the best. There is no other way in this sport. But the results are clear. I did in nine minutes [to Volkanosvki] what he was not able to do in 90 minutes. So, he can say whatever he wants, enjoy now, and get ready for what’s coming. He can do whatever he wants. He won’t be able to change that.”

But Topuria didn’t stop there. He went as far as to call Holloway an “easy fight” should the two meet in the octagon.

“He is a really easy fight as usual,” Topuria said. “I know people will come at me for saying this. This is what I think. I don’t see anything special. He is basic. Too basic. That’s what I see.

“He doesn’t know what to do when he is under pressure, can’t walk backward. Everybody is good when they have time to think. When you can walk forward, when they let you do whatever you want. Everyone is good there, but when you have someone who thinks, who counters, who attacks, who closes the angles, who throws power punches, is accurate, who can also wrestle, can take you to the ground, has an unbreakable mentality, undefeated … Things get very complicated.”

You have to admire the confidence. But at some point, Topuria will have to enter the cage against Holloway and back it all up.