Ilia Topuria made Josh Emmett look like a rookie earlier today (Sat., June 24, 2023) at UFC Jacksonville live on ABC/ESPN/ESPN+ from inside VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla., when the undefeated featherweight contender badly battered Emmett in a dominant main event win.
Topuria was real precise in the early going and utilized quick hands and slick combinations to bust Emmett up and keep him guessing. “El Matador” did even more damage in the second as he unloaded heavy shots that had Emmett wobbly on his feet. It didn’t look good for the elder contender.
Emmett came alive in the third with some solid counter hooks, but Topuria cut him again and punched his left eye completely shut. Emmett responded with better shot selection later into the round, but his face was a bloody mess. Topuria swung the momentum back in his favor in the fourth as he avoided most of Emmett’s counters and landed whipping calf kicks. That was until Topuria scored a timely knockdown and unloaded a barrage of punches to try to get the finish. Emmett somehow survived.
The fifth the final round saw Topuria impose his will even more and nearly put a stop to Emmett, who survived yet again. Topuria would go on to capture a very lopsided unanimous decision win and leave Emmett with a bruised face inside of the Octagon.
Check out some of the aftermath below:
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This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
