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Ilia Topuria recently opened up about his past stint at featherweight and was brutally honest about when the weight cut to 145-pounds started affecting him. Topuria noted that they were very challenging and were a deciding factor in his decision to make a permanent move up to 155-pounds.
Despite his challenging weight cut to make 145-pounds, Topuria achieved success in the division. 'El Matador' was unbeaten and became the UFC featherweight champion after knocking Alexander Volkanovski out. He then followed that up with a knockout win over Max Holloway in his first and only title defense.
In his latest appearance on The New York Post Sports' Against The Cage, Topuria revealed that his bout against Bryce Mitchell at UFC 282 was when his weight cuts started affecting him more.
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'El Matador' mentioned his body began gaining more mass, which made it difficult for him to cut down, and noted that he didn't want to leave the division without achieving his goals. He said:
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"The Bryce Mitchell fight [at UFC 282], it was normal to cut that weight, but then I grow, I get more muscle... I started to fill up [for] the Bryce Mitchell fight. The weight cut really, really hard. And I was like, 'Now, I can't move to the lightweight division because I'm already ranked'. So I wanted to finish this chapter that I have. Once I become a world champion, I will move to the lightweight [division]."
Topuria added:
"When I became world champion, I beat Volk and then I had in my division Max Holloway. So, I was like, 'I can't leave the division without fighting him'. I have to fight him, I have to beat him and then I'm done."
Check out Ilia Topuria's comments below (1:35):
Ilia Topuria opens up about positive mindset ahead of lightweight title fight
Ilia Topuria recently opened up about his positive mindset ahead of his vacant lightweight title fight against Charles Oliveira at UFC 317. In his latest appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Topuria mentioned that he has a more positive mindset compared to his featherweight weight cuts and is in a much better mood on fight week.
"Right now, I feel good, I feel happy. I'm still able to keep eating, keep drinking. I didn't have to kill myself to until this point."
Check out Ilia Topuria's comments below:
