Ilia Topuria tipped to mirror Khabib Nurmagomedov’s UFC journey by MMA legend: “He is a unicorn”

Ilia Topuria has previously stated his intention to retire from the sport by the age of 30. UFC legend Demetrious Johnson believes he may very well follow this path, aiming to retire with an undefeated record, similar to Khabib Nurmagomedov.

While discussing Topuria's recent win over Charles Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title at UFC 317, Johnson predicted his competitive future on The Mighty Guru Show podcast:

"I think he's a unicorn. I think you're gonna see him three or four more times, maybe five, max... and he's going to disappear. Just like, 'I'm done.' Undefeated, he could be a potential Khabib. Someone who just leaves the sport. It's like, 'I'm done, don't need to prove anything. I won the belt at '45, '55...' and should potentially, he can fight at 170 too!"

Check out Demetrious Johnson's comments below:

Topuria became the 10th two-division UFC champion with the devastating first-round knockout win over Charles Oliveira, improving his professional MMA record to a perfect 17-0.

He previously held the featherweight championship, having defeated Alexander Volkanovski to win the title, subsequently defending it against Max Holloway.

Many experts have compared his rise to that of Jon Jones, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor, who dismantled top fighters from previous generations to establish their dominance in the sport.

Among them, Nurmagomedov retired from competition while still at the peak of his career as lightweight champion and has since dedicated his time to helping his teammates.

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Demetrious Johnson proposes a grand plan for Ilia Topuria's first lightweight title defence

Names like Arman Tsarukyan, Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett have surfaced as potential challengers for Ilia Topuria's reign. In the aforementioned episode of The Mighty Guru Show podcast, Demetrious Johnson suggested Arman Tsarukyan as the rightful challenger and proposed:

"I think the next fight should be Arman Tsarukyan, who's healthy. Ilia Topuria didn't take a lot of damage. So they could run this fight - November, December - at MSG... Now that Jon Jones has retired, you're not going to have Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall. They can do Arman Tsarukyan vs. Ilia Topuria at MSG, a banger f* fight."

Check out Demetrious Johnson's comments below (19:17):

Social media reactions suggest that Topuria could be rapidly gaining popularity among fight fans, and a fight at Madison Square Garden could solidify this.

The UFC's November pay-per-views have been held at this iconic Arena in New York since 2016 and are a crucial aspect of the promotion's annual schedule.

Some of the most significant events featuring high-profile headlining bouts, such as UFC 205: McGregor vs. Alvarez, UFC 217: Bisping vs. St-Pierre, UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2, and UFC 281: Adesanya vs. Pereira, among others, have been held at MSG.