Ilia Topuria defended his featherweight title with élan. At the UFC 308 in Abu Dhabi, the Georgian-Spanish fighter knocked out Max Holloway in the third round. It is the second consecutive KO win for ‘El Matador’. Early in February, he flattened Alexander Volkanovski in the second round to claim the title. While immersed in universal applause, Topuria, perhaps to his own surprise, is receiving distinct recognition from an entirely different arena. Followers of the sweet science seem to be immensely impressed by Topuria’s pugilistic skills.

Whether he has a chance in the squared circle remains an unanswered question. However, based on what he observed in the octagon, former world champion Carl Froch believes that Ilia Topuria’s text book application must be a boxing trainer’s delight. In his weekly podcast, the International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee shared his insights on Topuria’s punching prowess.

“This Ilia Topuria is a bit of a boxer; he can box a move; he’s got some boxing skills,” said Carl Froch. The comments followed the reviews of last week’s Jack Catterall–Regis Prograis card. Apart from the headliner, he shared his thoughts on the Campbell Hatton–James Flint rematch.

Froch highlighted how many have been talking about Ilia Topuria’s boxing. After watching the Holloway fight, even he too had to admit that ‘El Matador’ possessed good techniques. Elaborating further, he shared how Topuria remained upright and moved around.

“But just looking at the finish, Ilia Topuria actually stunned Holloway with a right hand, and then he took his time. He just took his time and backed up Holloway against the fact that’s not the ropes; it’s the cage,” said ‘The Cobra’.

Talking about the left hook that sent Hollowing down to the floor, Carl Froch recalled a valuable lesson from award-winning trainer Rob McCracken—to lift his feet and pivot on the ball of his foot while delivering a punch. The technique basically allows the boxer to engage his entire body in the punch, making it stronger and more effective.

Ilia Topuria: Punches that reverberate across the cage

Ilia Topuria delivered that left hook to Max Holloway’s chin with enough force to knock him out. “He threw that left hook on Holloway’s chin and just ironed him out, finishing him off,” Froch said. The former super middleweight champion Topuria wrapped up the fight in the most impressive way. Lauding the UFC featherweight champion’s left hook, ‘The Cobra’ concluded, “It had some real art of pugilism in there from Topuria, so I’ve got to give him his credit.”

Carl Froch’s insights come across as quite interesting. For a reigning UFC champion to display boxing of the highest order is genuinely laudable. Javier Mendez, who trains Islam Makhachev, also lauded Ilia Topuria’s boxing, labeling it as the best. “[Ilia’s] got the best boxing, I believe, in the whole division, all the divisions, not just one,” said the former kickboxer, who had previously trained Khabib Nurmagomedov, along with many other champions.

Were you able to watch the Topuria-Holloway fight? What are your thoughts on ‘El Matador’s boxing skills?