Ilia Topuria’s rise hasn’t been flawless, as the budding superstar faced significant adversity during his lightweight fight with Jai Herbert in London, but the takeaway from this fight is that Topuria has all the assets to be a real contender.
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Representing both Georgia and Spain, Topuria, 27, took a headbutt from Herbert in the first minute of the fight that nearly knocked him out, but he managed to find Herbert’s legs and to grab it for a large part of the turn. . Once Herbert broke free, he found immediate success on his feet and continued to hurt Topuria. At the end of the round, Topuria nodded – indicating that he was fine.
And he showed it in the second, pushing Herbert away and unleashing an incredible four-strike combo that ended with a right hand to the button that knocked Herbert out. Not bad for moving up a weight class and fighting a dangerous striker in his home country.
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