Ilia Topuria continued his winning ways at UFC Jacksonville by defeating Josh Emmett via a unanimous decision. He dominated his opponent throughout the five rounds. However, there was one point when he thought that the referee might have stopped the fight after Emmett suffered a nasty eye injury. Topuria spoke about the situation during the post-fight press conference.

Ilia Topuria fought five rounds for the first time in his UFC career. He also extended his undefeated run with six wins in a row. Furthermore, he put on a performance of a lifetime in a one-sided fight against featherweight veteran Josh Emmett.

It surprised Ilia Topuria that the referee Mark Goddard didn’t stop the fight in the 4th round

‘El Matador’ dominated Josh Emmett in such a way that the veteran’s face was left barely recognizable. His performance helped cement his status as one of the top contenders in the division, with a record of fourteen wins and zero losses. However, during the press conference, Ilia Topuria expressed his shock at the failure of the referee, Marc Goddard, and Emmet’s corner to stop the fight after the fourth round, when ‘CC0’ was clearly hurting from the blows he took from the Georgian fighter.

Topuria said, “In the fourth round, I was think that the referee stopping the fight because of his eyes. It was like disgusting to see that.” He was pretty confident that the contest may come to an end because Emmett’s eye was in a horrible state. However, it surprised Ilia Topuria to see the fight go into the fifth round. He added, “A little bit [surprised to see Emmett fight the fifth round]. A little bit, I was. That’s what I were telling you. I was thinking that they were stopping the fight because of his eye.”

So how exactly did the fight pan out for Topuria?

‘El Matador’ showcased a great fight IQ

Ilia Topuria displayed great techniques during the fight against Josh Emmett. Throughout the fight, Topuria demonstrated his superior speed to Emmett. At the halfway point of the second round, ‘El Matadaor’ lumped him up and was on the verge of knocking ‘CC0’ out in the third.

Topuria’s matched his hand speed with great precision punching, and Emmett had no choice but to look helpless. This performance might have put the Georgian fighter in title contention.

READ MORE: Is Ilia Topuria the Future of the Men’s UFC Featherweight Division?

Ilia Topuria had proclaimed that he would prove his worthiness to attain a title shot before the fight, and he delivered on that promise. Furthermore, he mentioned that he’ll be present for the undisputed title fight between Alexander Volkanovski and Yair Rodriguez at UFC 290. We will have to wait and see if ‘El Matador’ gets his shot at the title next.

What do you make of his comments about the fight? Let us know in the comments section below.

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