Jon Anik believes new UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria is one of a kind.
The UFC play-by-play commentator has been blown away by what Topuria (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) has accomplished inside the Octagon. The Spanish-Georgian star predicted a first-round knockout of former UFC champion Charles Oliveira ahead of UFC 317 last weekend—then went on to deliver exactly that, becoming the first fighter in UFC history to win titles in two separate weight classes while remaining undefeated.
Although “El Matador” isn’t the first man to win gold in two divisions, Anik believes the way he’s done it sets him apart from the rest.
“It is nuts, it’s like nothing I’ve seen before,” Anik said this week during an interview with MMA Fighting. “I know sometimes I’m criticized for sounding extra hyperbolic, but calm, cool, collected doesn’t even begin to describe it. He is so matter of fact, as if the outcome is an eventuality against Hall of Famer after Hall of Famer, and now after third Hall of Famer that I don’t really know that there’s a comp.
“I mean, yes, there’s a lot of Conor McGregor parallels to be drawn, but even the way after he wins, he’s just like he doesn’t even have the desire to jump on the cage. It’s just crazy and the celebration the night before, when an athlete says things like, ‘I’m just going to collect the belt and I won it in camp,’ it’s like, yeah, but you still got to go perform on fight night. You can’t be flat on fight night.
“We used to say about Floyd Mayweather, 50-0 is 50-0, he was never flat on fight night. You still got to go out and do it. But with this guy, it is almost as if he bends time.”
Having now captured UFC titles at both 145 and 155 pounds, Topuria has discussed the possibility of moving up yet another weight class to challenge Islam Makhachev (27-1 MMA, 16-2 UFC)—if the Dagestani manages to claim the UFC welterweight title from Jack Della Maddalena when they meet later this year.
While the idea of Topuria winning titles in three divisions may have once seemed like a pipe dream, Anik believes his win over Oliveira at T-Mobile Arena last weekend may have changed public perception of what the new lightweight champion is truly capable of.
“Just imagine if you are Islam Makhachev, Justin Gaethje, or Dustin Poirier, and you’re watching that play out,” Anik said. “Any fighter with recent history with Charles Oliveira from, say 2019 on, and then you see that, right? And don’t tell me this isn’t a prime Charles Oliveira. I mean, if this is The Hunger Games, he still leads the league.
“He’s still as hungry as ever to fight. So imagine what it’s like for some of Ilia Topuria’s contemporaries to be watching that, and I think that speaks to why that section was stunned. And thankfully as commentators, we were anything but silent because we have a job to do, but I think for a lot of fans, you and me, it’s like, ‘dude, I’m not going to put anything past this guy.’ I wasn’t liking his chances at welterweight before this result, and then I’m thinking, my goodness, man, far be it for me to put anything past the guy. ... This Ilia Topuria, man, he’s one of one, and his peers are certainly taking notice.”
