UFC icon urges Ilia Topuria to face Paddy Pimblett, wrestler shares Syko Stu health update, Chael Sonnen shares theory on Jon Jones: MMA News Roundup

UFC legend Dominick Cruz recently explained why Ilia Topuria should face Paddy Pimblett next. Elsewhere, Syko Stu's friend shared an update on the professional wrestler's health after he was brutally assaulted by Raja Jackson. Chael Sonnen also shared a theory on Jon Jones' alleged PED usage.

Catch up on all the latest developments in combat sports with Sportskeeda's MMA News Roundup.

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Dominick Cruz explains why Ilia Topuria vs. Paddy Pimblett makes sense

UFC icon Dominick Cruz recently pushed Ilia Topuria to accept the Paddy Pimblett fight for his first lightweight title defense. Cruz pointed out that the reigning UFC lightweight champion was essentially a prizefighter and should focus on facing high-profile opponents like Pimblett whenever the opportunities presented themselves.

In an interview on the Anik & Florian Podcast, the UFC icon made Pimblett's case for Topuria's next challenge and said:

"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:

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Professional wrestler shares update on Syko Stu's health days after brutal attack

Douglas Malo, the wrestler who stopped Raja Jackson's brutal assault on Syko Stu last weekend, recently shared a major update on his friend's health. It appears Stu is awake and is able to engage in limited communication.

In an interview with TMZ Sports, Malo revealed that Stu had suffered some serious but non-life-threatening injuries and said:

''[Stu] remembers mostly what happened during the early parts of the day. He's talking a little bit. He's alert. He's still got some injuries that are very serious. Not, like, life-threatening serious, but, facial injuries, stuff like that... I'm pissed at what he did to my friend. I'm pissed at him for punching me in the face."

He continued:

"I'm pissed at him that when I went to take him off and told him to calm down, he tried to double-leg me. If he would have double legged me, he would have done the same thing to me that he did to Stu, you know?'' [H/t: TMZ Sports]

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UFC icon believes "insecurity could be behind Jon Jones' alleged steroid use

UFC icon Chael Sonnen recently shared his theory on Jon Jones' alleged PED use over the course of his career. Sonnen believes Jones' insecurity about his own skill set led to him allegedly opting for steroids.

In an episode of the Good Guy/ Bad Guy podcast, Sonnen weighed in on co-host Daniel Cormier's ongoing squabble with Jones and addressed the UFC legend's alleged steroid use, saying:

"Everybody goes down that road where they cheat the rules because they somewhere had an insecurity. They somewhere wanted an edge and then they come back, go, 'But I could have done it anyway.' Well, maybe you didn't think you could. If you thought you could, you would not have put a synthetic chemical substance into your a**."

He continued:

"It's just one of those things, and Jon really gets upset about that. He doesn't deny the hit-and-runs. He doesn't deny the c*caine allegations. That's the one that bothers him, the picogram and the couple of failed tests. That's a very common thing with athletes. I do believe Jon could have been champ of the world without steroids, but somewhere within him, at some point, he doubted that, and that's the life he chose." [H/t: MMA Junkie]