Lol. Stop making excuses man
Max was the one risking everything in that exchange against Gaethje, up a weight class, against a killer, and he landed one of the best KO's of the year. Stop with the "he was fouled" bullshit.
Trying to downplay how dominant Islam has been just completely outs you as a garbage troll. The man has subbed Oliveira, decisioned Volk, KO'd Volk, and subbed Poirier, in his last 4 fights. Fuck off. Volk had been untouchable at 145 until Topuria KO'd him.
I thought you said Emmett was a grandpa? Bryce Mitchell a great wrestler in his prime should have disposed of him no problem, right? Guess what? Topuria is a better wrestler AND striker than both of them, by miles. That's why he destroyed them both with ease.
You don't know who the rising prospect that's going to dethrone Topuria is, because he's only 27, and there's literally no one on the roster right now that would be favored over him at 145.
Don't get your panties in a bunch. This isn't about Islam. Yes, Islam has been dominant, but dominant in the sense that he has won, not in the sense that he has been dominant in those victories (a declining Volk with a full camp almost beat him, and a 35 year-old Poirier also made him fight for his life). In all likelihood, we're about to see Islam lose his title, whether you like it or not. Arman already put the heat on him in his early twenties, he might just put the nail on the coffin now (and I don't even like Arman). But again, this isn't about Islam. The point is that Volk had just gotten KOed, it doesn't matter if it was Islam or Artem Lobov who did it.
So Volk had been untouchable at 145, and this was the Volk who fought Topuria, because they're fighting at 145? Okay, so we're just going to pretend like the Volk who fights at 145 didn't take the damage he did at 155? So Volk at 145 and 155 are literally two different people? Twin brothers, or do they come from alternate universes? Because that "Volk who was untouchable at 145" did get touched up at 155, and badly. It did happen. Him going down to 145 doesn't somehow make him a different person. He had just gotten knocked out months prior, and everyone was saying it was a mistake for him to try to bounce back so quickly, and you know for a fact people were saying this. So not only was he elderly when he fought Top by FW standards, but he was also concussed.
And yeah, Emmett was a grandpa, I stand by that. Power is the last thing that goes. It's not surprising at all that he KOed Bryce Mitchell, who is a wrestler (not a "great" one like you said, though).
I highly doubt Topuria is a better striker than Emmett. He absorbed 87 significant strikes from elderly Emmett and couldn't even put him out, despite having a 12 year youth advantage. As for him being a better wrestler than Bryce, sure, I agree... that ain't a tall order. Like, at all.
And exactly, Top is 27, I am glad you're finally opening your eyes. He's 27, in a division full of relics of the past.
