Featherweight fighter Ilia Topuria recently found himself on the receiving end of some verbal jabs from former interim champion Yair Rodriguez. Rodriguez claimed that Topuria has "talked" his way into a title shot, a claim that the undefeated fighter has now responded to in no uncertain terms.
In a conversation with 'Middle Easy', Rodriguez had this to say about Topuria:
“Ilia’s good, but I don’t think he has what he needs in order for him to win that fight (against Volkanovski). Because this guy (Ilia Topuria) just talked so much sh*t, they just give him the opportunity, you know?”
The fight in question is set to take place at UFC 298 on Saturday, February 17th at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Ilia Topuria (14-0 MMA) will be stepping into the Octagon with Alexander Volkanovski (26-3 MMA) for the main event featherweight title bout.
In an interview with 'KOImenero', Topuria responded to Rodriguez's implications. He asserted that his current position is a result of his winning streak, not his talking abilities.
“They have not been giving me big fights because I’ve been talking, but because I have been winning, which is something that differentiates him and me. I don’t win fights because my opponent’s (Ortega) shoulder pops out. I don’t win because they beat me up, and in the fifth round he (Jung) took an elbow that I don’t even know where it came from. They don’t use me as a rag in the fights.”
Topuria went on to share some advice for Rodriguez, a message that he shared via MMAJunkie:
"What do you mean I talk? Let him talk, and he will see that he will not get anything. If he is going to see this, a piece of advice for him: Let him start winning, and he will start receiving things. Talking doesn’t get you anything. What you have to do is to win, which is something that is hard to do.”
Clearly, Ilia Topuria believes his skills and winning record have earned him his title shot, not empty words. And with the fight only a few weeks away, he is ready to prove his worth in the Octagon.
Meanwhile, Yair Rodriguez (16-4 MMA) is preparing for his own featherweight fight against Brian Ortega (15-3 MMA) in the co-main event on Saturday, February 24th in Mexico City.
