JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Ilia Topuria thinks a victory over Josh Emmett in Saturday’s UFC on ABC 5 will serve as his launching point for a featherweight title shot.
Topuria (13-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) competes in his first octagon headliner when he meets Emmett (18-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) in a key matchup for the 145-pound division, which takes place at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena and airs on ABC following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+. With an unblemished record so far in his UFC tenure, Topuria believes he’s put in the work to be considered a title contender.
If he beats Emmett, Topuria argues his resume gets taken over the top, and he should receive a crack at UFC gold.
“I’m the next guy in the line,” Topuria told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s UFC on ABC 5 media day. “Who deserves more than me to fight for the title? No one else. So I’m the next guy.”
The timing of a potential Topuria win could be ideal. A featherweight title unification bout between champion Alexander Volkanovski and interim titleholder Yair Rodriguez takes place July 8 at UFC 290, and there’s no clear next man on deck.
Topuria expects it to be him, and he hopes it’s Volkanovski (25-2 MMA, 12-1 UFC) who is in possession of the undisputed strap rather than Rodriguez (15-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC).
“I’m going to finish him in the first round,” Topuria said. “Of course it’s going to be a little bit bigger to beat someone who is pound-for-pound No. 1. It’s going to be bigger than if Yair beats him, and I beat Yair. Because Yair lost a lot of fights with a lot of ranked guys – with Max Holloway, with Frankie Edgar. He lost a lot of fights. I prefer the fight against Alex and to take the win against him.”
Although Topuria is discussing the stakes around a victory, he made it clear he’s not disrespecting Emmett. Topuria said he knows he has a difficult task at hand Saturday, but he has zero doubt what the result will be, which is why he’s OK talking about everything else.
“I’m not overlooking anyone,” Topuria said. “Never, ever. I’m just confident about all the work I’m doing, how hard I work, everything I’m doing in all my training camps. The confidence doesn’t come from the air. I work really hard, and I know I’m better than anyone.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 5.