UFC legend explains why Paddy Pimblett "just makes sense" for Ilia Topuria's next fight

UFC icon Dominick Cruz recently shared his thoughts on why Ilia Topuria should face Paddy Pimblett next. Cruz explained that mixed martial artists are essentially prize fighters and must prioritize high-profile matchups.

After Islam Makhachev vacated the lightweight title to move to welterweight, Topuria went up against Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 for the vacant championship and knocked the Brazilian out in the opening round to become the new king of the 155-pound division.

In the immediate aftermath, Topuria faced off with Pimblett inside the octagon and fueled speculation that the Englishman was next for him. However, Arman Tsarukyan and Justin Gaethje have both called for the next title shot, with 'The Highlight' even threatening to retire if his demands weren't met.

In an appearance on the Anik & Florian Podcast, Cruz shared some advice for Topuria and said:

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"This thing's about paychecks at a time. We're prize fighters. We're not anything else. We want to say we're all these other things. We are prize fighters. You put a prize out there, we take the prize, you win it, or you lose it. Who's the biggest prize? We all know the answer to this between those three [Pimblett, Gaethje, and Tsarukyan]."

He continued:

"So, if you're smart, you take that fight like that guy's the bag. Now, not to say the other guys aren't good, but the problem is Paddy, it's just that he promotes, he talks, he's got a very big package. It just makes sense to make the most money with that fight." [H/t: MMA Junkie]

Watch the full episode below:

Paddy Pimblett issues bold prediction for potential Ilia Topuria fight

Paddy Pimblett is supremely confident of his chances against Ilia Topuria in a potential fight. The Englishman recently shared his thoughts on a potential clash with the Georgian-Spanish fighter and predicted a strong finish.

In an interview with Sky Sports, Pimblett referenced Conor McGregor's first-round KO of Jose Aldo and said:

"I finish him. I finish him. I don't see him lasting five rounds with me. I genuinely believe I'd finish him. Keep having mad, mad dreams that I finish him in like the first 10 seconds like McGregor did Aldo. That wouldn't be good enough for him. I'd want to beat him up for a consistent couple of rounds, hit him with over like 70 elbows, disfigure him a little bit, and then finish him."

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Edited by Nishant Zende.