Diego Lopes is the man to defeat Topuria

This is the fight I wanna see next but I suspect it's gonna be a Volk rematch. In fact, I reckon it headlines 312 in Feb, and DDP will be shifted to a later PPV to fight Khamzat in the middle east.
 
Blanqa Blanqua said:
He looked rough as his fight with Ige progressed, like he was avoiding this (from Age, let alone Topuria!). Sadly, IMO.


Also, sadly, IMO, the only man to beat Topuria is as below:



<thisgonbegood>
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I can literally remember singing and dancing in my room to Eye of the Tiger when I was like 5 years old (that was the jam). Lol, it's crazy how you can remember certain things like that.

As far as Lopes goes, the guy is exciting, talented, and has the best hair in the game. If he can improve his striking defense he'll probably give anyone trouble. Imo Ilia had even worse striking defense than Lopes pre UFC . It's what Ilia has improved most of all by 100 country miles. I don't see any reason Lopes couldn't do the same. My advice, seek out Topuria's boxing coach immediately. Lol

The problem for all these guys at 145 is that Ilia is still young AF. I've stated it like 2 years ago when I first saw him fight and I'll say it again, he'll eventually reach legend status if he stays healthy. He's the closest fighter to having no weakness's that I can think of.
 
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Poirierfan said:
I can literally remember singing and dancing in my room to Eye of the Tiger when I was like 5 years old (that was the jam). Lol, it's crazy how you can remember certain things like that.

As far as Lopes goes, the guy is exciting, talented, and has the best hair in the game. If he can improve his striking defense he'll probably give anyone trouble. Imo Ilia had even worse striking defense than Lopes pre UFC . It's what Ilia has improved most of all by 100 country miles. I don't see any reason Lopes couldn't do the same. My advice, seek out Topuria's boxing coach immediately. Lol

The problem for all these guys at 145 is that Ilia is still young AF. I've stated it like 2 years ago when I first saw him fight and I'll say it again, he'll eventually reach legend status if he stays healthy. He's the closest fighter to having no weakness's that I can think of.
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haha word man. 80's memories are unparalleled - we were too poor to have a tv, and lol my first memory of one is watching Rambo 1 'First Blood' at someones house as a tiny kid while my parents had dinner with them lol. Quite character building.

Totally agree man, and your last line inspired this:

1730150745973.jpeg
 
There is only one man to beat Topuria
20240625120346_Jean_Silva_ff.JPG
 
Blanqa Blanqua said:
haha word man. 80's memories are unparalleled - we were too poor to have a tv, and lol my first memory of one is watching Rambo 1 'First Blood' at someones house as a tiny kid while my parents had dinner with them lol. Quite character building.

Totally agree man, and your last line inspired this:

View attachment 1069157
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That's horse meat Topuria. Haha
 
TimeToTrain said:
As a Max fan I knew Topuria’s boxing will be too much for him. To fight Topuria, you need to be relentless and fearless to stand and exchange with him. Max wasn’t that in their match.

Diego will be the guy to defeat Ilia by heart
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Honestly as tough as Lopes is, I can see him getting knocked out if he's too wreckless. I also don't feel he has the wrestling to take Topuria down. At the same time, however, being wreckless may be his best bet as I don't see him winning a kickboxing match against Topuria... tough to say -- I'd watch the hell out of the fight though.
 
Doesn’t have the gas tank. He’ll be dangerous in rd 1 though
 
He’s tough and durable, but he is not a crisp striker. He’s not beating Ilia.
 
Mammothman said:
It would be a violent fight for sure
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Agree.

Diego has what I would consider a "brawlers chance"

I don't think Diego is the superior striker, I don't think he has necessarily more power, I don't think he is faster.

I think Diego is probably bigger and maybe a little more accustomed to operating within chaos. That wouldn't make him a favorite but it does leave a legitimate possible path to victory. He is a Wildman, he could do Wildman shit and land something big amidst a crazy exchange.

In a technical striking match, Ilia all day.


That also means the onus is on Diego to create those wild exchanges, which is often where this type of scenario falls short, as he will likely eat a bit of leather if he tries this and he would likely need to eat leather and choose to continue taking risks, which is much easier said than done.
 
If Umar Moves up to 145 I think he beats him sadly. Top is a good champ- he can sell fights and is fun to watch.
 
Noraaq said:
Topuria is a generational puncher. We’ve never seen anybody with his combination of natural power + technique in the sport

Ige is a good litmus test for how a fighter would do against Topuria. Ige and Topuria are similar in size, physical qualities, and they employ the same macro strategy. Topuria is just much better than Ige everywhere. If you struggle with Ige, I don’t like your chances against Topuria. After 308, Lerone Murphy has no shot vs Ilia. Same with Lopes after I saw him fight vs Ige.

The person that beats Topuria is someone that won’t trade with him in boxing range. It’s gonna be someone that will grab the wrists, hang on his arms, make him work hard to create space to let his combos fly. Possibly tired him out annd test him in the late rounds. Easier said than done, but Lopes doesn’t have the ability nor the strength to do that.

Allen and Evloev are much more interesting stylistic match ups for Topuria, imo.
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Haha, I never thought about it that way. In a way Ilia is a waaay better type of a Dan Ige

Dan Ige 4.0


I say throw Lopes in there to lose while he has momentum. Screw the rematches.

Mosvar presents different problems and Allen would be a good fight too. Although he might get cleaned up boxing too much


If Ilia zaps another dude they may have to sic there boy Islam on him LoL
 
HNIC215 said:
Did you see Diego's face when they zoomed in during the broadcast, right after the KO?

He looked intimidated (not saying he is intimidated) - just saying, he had that look of astonishment and fear.
xIvVzDj.gif
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u mean kinda like everyone said Topuria looked shook af after Max KOed Gaethje?

Then he KOed Max
 
usernamee said:
u mean kinda like everyone said Topuria looked shook af after Max KOed Gaethje?

Then he KOed Max
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You're like the 10th person to reply to me with this remark but I don't remember what Topuria's face looked like after Max KO'd Gaethje.

You got a video?

Also, I don't think Diego beats Ilia.
 
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