Ilia Topuria already has his eyes on a new career outside of the UFC, with plans to make the switch that are not too far in the future.
Two-weight world champion Topuria has already won UFC belts at lightweight and featherweight, with plans to defend the former for the first time later next year. He is currently taking some time away from the octagon, and that may be permanent sooner than you think.
Who should Ilia Topuria fight when he returns to the UFC?
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The Georgian has always harbored ambitions of pursuing a boxing career, and he still expects to do that once his time in the octagon is done. And having done it all at the age of just 28, he may be making the change in short order.
- Who is Ilia Topuria? Meet the undefeated two-weight champion dominating the UFC.
Ilia Topuria plots full-time boxing switch after UFC career
One key difference between Ilia Topuria’s boxing plan and those of, for example, Conor McGregor or Francis Ngannou, is that he wants to be fully wrapped up with MMA by the time he does it. He doesn’t want to split time between sports, and instead plans to be fully dedicated to his new sport.
Was Ilia Topuria’s title-winning KO against Charles Oliveira his most brutal finish in the UFC so far?
‘Do Bronx’ joined Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway on the list of big names who have fallen victim to Topuria’s ferocious power.
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“It’s no secret that I always wanted to go and test my skills in boxing, but I think something I’ve always applied to my life is that he who wants to hunt two rabbits in the end does not hunt either,” he told Marca in a recent interview.
“So I want to first finish my story in MMA and once I finish to make my complete transition to boxing because I can not be preparing for an MMA fight, then go, prepare for a boxing match, return… I think it would not be very professional, right? Because boxing needs a completely different approach.
“It’s a very, very, very different training to which I have to adapt. Obviously they are different times and come on, it’s not an octagon, it’s a ring, and I would have to adapt to it, which takes time, like everything in life.
“So now, at this moment, in mixed martial arts, when I’m done, I don’t think I’m going to be too long if I’m honest in this sport… I’ll make my transition to boxing and I’m going to surprise more than one”.
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