Ilia Topuria names only reason he will give Alexander Volkanovski rematch 

Ilia Topuria called his shot and took it against Alexander Volkanovski, dethroning the long-reigning Australian king at UFC 298.

'El Matador' caught the MMA community by surprise with his pre-fight comments, stating that he would not grant the division's top-ranked contenders, such as Max Holloway and Brian Ortega, a shot at the title should he become the champion.

After defeating Volkanovski via KO this weekend, the Spaniard appeared at the post-event press conference, where he discussed potential opponents for his next fight.

He doubled down on his statement that the division's elite contenders did not deserve a shot at the belt. But the new champion was open to a potential rematch with 'The Great' and pointed to one specific reason he would accept a second bout with Volkanovski:

"To be honest, at this point I'm like, 'Okay I'm going to give him the rematch because he's a good person.' But at the same time, it's time to move on. It's time to clean up the division a little bit. It's time for the new generation, to have new challenges [and] new faces. I will be looking for that."

Watch Ilia Topuria's interview below from 2:28:

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Ilia Topuria reflects on knockout victory over Alexander Volkanovski

Ilia Topuria realized his dreams at UFC 298 with a superb performance against one of the greatest featherweights of all time, Alexander Volkanovski.

Both men entered the fight undefeated at 145 pounds, and after a competitive opening round, the Spaniard unleashed a vicious combination in Round 2 that left 'The Great' unconscious.

'El Matador' extended his record to 15-0 and joined an elite club as only the fifth UFC featherweight champion ever.

Following his victory, Topuria was interviewed by Megan Olivi, where he reflected on his performance, as well as what surprised him about Volkanovski. He said:

"He surprised me. He was very fast with his jabs, his movement. The way he was standing in the cage, he surprised me a little bit. It took me a little bit of time to study him inside the cage. But at the end of the day, we did the job."

Topuria continued:

"Normally I do a lot of counters off of a jab, but with [Volkanovski] it was a little bit difficult... "

Watch the interview below from 1:05: