Conor McGregor doesn’t deny that there are similarities between himself and Ilia Topuria.
During a rare appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show this week ahead of his scheduled comeback fight against Max Holloway at UFC 329 next month, the former two-division UFC champion was asked about the comparisons that have followed Topuria throughout his rise to stardom.
Ever since capturing both the UFC featherweight and lightweight titles, Topuria (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) has drawn frequent comparisons to McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC), who famously became the first fighter in UFC history to hold championships in two weight classes simultaneously.
According to McGregor, the similarities are hard to ignore.
“He has the same tattoos! He says the same stuff! He does the same f--king movements,” McGregor said. “He was going to scream on the (scale at weigh-ins). He’s a good lad. He's alright. I like him. Maybe.”
While McGregor acknowledged the parallels between their careers and personalities, he also weighed in on Topuria’s first professional defeat, which came last Sunday in the main event of UFC Freedom 250 at the White House.
Topuria suffered a fourth-round stoppage loss to Justin Gaethje after his corner elected to pull him from the fight following a sustained barrage of punishment. The defeat marked the first loss of Topuria’s professional career and ended his undefeated run.
McGregor revealed that he was not surprised by the outcome, claiming he had concerns after watching footage from Topuria’s training camp leading into the fight.
“I knew that was going to happen to him. I knew,” McGregor said. “I knew by his training. I'd just seen the training. You need to get it put on you in the gym. You need to get it put on you.”
McGregor did not elaborate on the specific aspects of Topuria’s preparation that raised red flags for him, but he suggested the training footage he saw indicated vulnerabilities that would eventually surface under the pressure of a fight against an opponent as dangerous as Gaethje.
Now preparing for his own return to competition against Holloway at UFC 329, McGregor remains one of the sport’s most influential figures, while Topuria faces the challenge of rebounding from the first setback of his career after a meteoric rise to championship status.
