Meet Ilia Topuria, the son of refugees and high school dropout set to replace Conor McGregor as the face of the UFC
THE Ultimate Fighting Championship is potentially just days away from having a new poster boy.
And it's somewhat fitting that the potential coronation of mixed martial arts' premier promotion's new king will take place nearly four years to the day that Conor McGregor - the face of the sport for several years - had what looked to be his final outing.
Advertisement
9
Ilia Topuria is on the cusp of making UFC history
Credit: AP
9
The Georgian-born Spaniard will look to claim the vacant UFC lightweight title
Credit: GETTY
9
Standing between Topuria and yet more history is former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira
Credit: GETTY
9
Topuria and his family come from incredibly humble beginnings
Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA
Many have long thought the heir apparent to McGregor's throne was 'Suga' Sean O'Malley, although back-to-back
championship
defeats to Merab Dvalishvili have seen the former bantamweight king's sweetness fade.
The man poised to succeed 'The Notorious' is a Georgian-born Spaniard who made a statement on the prelims of what with increasing certainty looks to be the last McGregor card in UFC history.
The man in question is former featherweight champion Ilia Topuria, who will bid to further write his name into the
history
books
early on Sunday morning in the
Las Vegas
.
Undefeated Topuria will do battle with fellow fan favourite and former lightweight champion
Islam
Makhachev left aside.
Advertisement
READ MORE ON TOPURIA
Becoming the
TENTH
two-weight champion in UFC history in the fashion he claimed and defended the featherweight title will catapult Topuria into a new stratosphere, one he always believed he'd reach.
Topuria, 28, was born in 1997 in Halle,
Germany
, where his parents were granted refuge during the ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia in the '90s.
It was in
Germany
that Topuria would discover the sport of Greco-Roman
wrestling
, which he practised along with his younger brother, Aleksandre.
The Topuria family would eventually return to
Georgia
, where the brothers would continue their education in Greco-Roman wrestling, in 2003.
Advertisement
Most read in MMA
JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS
9
Ilia Topuria and his siblings are the sons of refugees who fled the ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia in the '90s
Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA
9
Topuria and his younger brother, Aleksandre, dropped out of school in their mid-teens to pursue MMA
Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA
9
Topuria tore through the regional and European scene before being signed by the UFC
Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA
Advertisement
9
He rewarded his dad's trust in him by winning UFC gold in February 2024
Credit: INSTGRAM@ILIATOPURIA
Eager to provide a better life for their children, Topuria's parents, Zaza and Inga, moved the family to Alicante,
Spain
, in 2012.
Not long after their arrival, Topuria's mother spotted a man sporting cauliflower ears and asked him if he knew where her sons could continue their training.
Watch jacked Ilia Topuria complete epic UFC 317 body transformation after ditching crash diet to lose over 40lbs
That chance encounter paved the way for Topuria to start his mixed martial arts journey under the tutelage of the Climent brothers, Agustin and Jorge.
Advertisement
The Topuria brothers' passion for MMA was so fervent that they both asked their dad if they could
DROP OUT
of school to pursue their dreams of fighting in the UFC.
In 2022, Ilia said of his early teenage years in Spain: 'Yes [it was hard to communicate], but I left school when I was like 15 years old.
'When I was 15 years old, I went with my brother to talk with my father to tell him, 'Hey, dad.
''We don't want to go to school any more, but we really want to train.
Advertisement
'And we're going to the gym all day, every day, and we're going to train.'
'Because my dream was to fight in the UFC. And he told me, 'If you're really going to train all the time like you tell me, then you have my approval.
'That's one of the reasons why I made my debut so young in the UFC, because it's very tough to get into the UFC from Spain.
'Because I wasn't living in the
United States
and I wasn't born here, because it's easier.'
Advertisement
I left school when I was like 15 years old."
Ilia Topuria
Three years after beginning his training with the Climent brothers, Topuria made his professional debut at the tender age of 18.
He'd rip through the competition on the regional and European circuits with eight straight finishes, seven of which came via submission.
The UFC came calling in October 2022 and Topuria hasn't looked back since, stopping all comers bar Youssef Zalal and Josh Emmett - both of whom were battered from pillar to post - on his way to claiming and defending the featherweight crown.
His coronation as featherweight king came last February with a sensational second-round knockout of fan favourite Alexander Volkanovski.
Advertisement
And his final outing in the division last October saw him achieve the previously unthinkable and knock out iron-chinned former featherweight champion Max Holloway.
Topuria's exploits - in particular his championship victories - have seen him become a superstar in Georgia, Spain and the rest of the Spanish-speaking world.
He has a whopping 7.7million
Instagram
followers, has been recognised by boyhood footie team Real
Madrid
- who presented him in front of a capacity crowd at the Bernabeu after his KO of Volk - and is pals with Los Blancos legends Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos.
His global following will explode and the celebs in his orbit will only become bigger, even though he doesn't crave the limelight, should he become a two-weight champion in a similar fashion to his featherweight coronation.
Advertisement
The title of 'biggest star in the UFC' is right there for the taking for Topuria.
All that remains now is for him to make it his own in devastating fashion.
9
Ilia Topuria is already a superstar in Spain and can become a global name with a win over Charles Oliveira
Credit: GETTY
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
17 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
MMA referee screams at doctors to help as former UFC star carried out of cage after sickening kick to testicles
A REFEREE screamed for help from a doctor after a former UFC star crumpled in agony from a kick to the testicles. Stricken Alexander Romanov had to be carried from the cage on a stretcher after just his second Professional Fighters League (PFL) match. Advertisement 5 Alexander Romanov was in agony after the low kick 5 Romanov crashed to the floor during the first round 5 Valentin Moldavsky appeared distressed at his opponent's fate The Moldovan, aka King Kong, was once a top UFC heavyweight prospect. But the 34-year-old switched to a different Mixed Martial Art earlier this year. And he was closing in on a PFL heavyweight title shot when a sickening blow sent him reeling. Romanov was taking on Russian Valentin Moldavsky, 33, in Chicago. Advertisement READ MORE ON MMA And his eye-watering fate came as early as the opening round. Romanov struggled to seriously trouble Moldavsky, despite landing a few of his renowned slam takedowns. And when the younger man got up, he put on enough pressure to leave King Kong tiring. But little more than 30 seconds were left in the first of the three five-minute rounds when the distressing moment arrived. Advertisement Most read in MMA 5 'King Kong' Romanov could do little but suffer desperately BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK The pair were grasping each other on the ropes when Romanov delivered a knee to his opponent. Moldavsky returned the blow in kind - but accidentally went too low. Advertisement Canelo Alvarez vs Terence Crawford in another twist as UFC boss Dana White says he IS promoting super-fight Romanov instantly slumped to the floor, holding his groin - while his rival protested his innocence. The ref yelled for medical aid as Romanov was in obvious agony and fight fans looked on worried. Meanwhile, Moldavsky sunk to his knees, with his head down - apparently in rueful reflection The cage-side doctor dashed over to treat the stricken giant. Advertisement And the doc soon confirmed the inevitable - that Romanov would be unable to continue. The 18st 13lbs wrestler was then taken away on a stretcher. It meant the bout - a PFL heavyweight tournament semi-final - was ruled a "no contest". Romanov had dazzled when winning his only other PFL fight in May, beating 40-year-old American Timothy May by submission. Advertisement It left the East European well placed for a title shot - until a badly placed knee in his very next fight. 5 There was never much doubt the fight was over at this point
The Irish Sun
32 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
What bands REALLY get paid to play Glastonbury as Rod Stewart reveals it'll cost HIM money to appear at festival
HEADLINING Glastonbury is considered by many artists as the peak of their success – and they're willing to cough up some cash to prove it. The annual event, which takes place at Worthy Farm in Cornwall, has been a platform for stars to showcase their careers, launch new music, and win over new fans in the process. 5 Rod Stewart will appear on the Pyramid Stage this weekend Credit: Getty 5 Glastonbury is the music event of the year - with some willing to pay to be there Credit: Getty 5 Dua Lipa is reported to have fed the cost of her appearance back into her set Credit: Getty But it doesn't come cheaply – particularly when you take into account the artists pay for spectacle they bring to the stage. While Glastonbury does not disclose how much they pay their artists, some big stars have opened up in the past about how much they earn as a result of the festival. Rod Stewart, who is taking on the Legends slot on Sunday night, has admitted Speaking to READ MORE GLASTONBURY However, he said it "doesn't matter" as it's considered such an honour. The same goes for the other headliners both past and present – with The 1975, who took to the Pyramid stage to close out Friday, spent approximately FOUR TIMES the amount they were paid for their performance, according to The band's frontman Matty Healy was seen Last year's headliner Dua Lipa reportedly had to do the same to make sure her set was one to remember. Most read in Music According to But again, she said it was worth it, saying of the festival: ""There's something about the community and the energy at Glastonbury that is unlike anywhere else. Lewis Capaldi makes emotional Glastonbury speech as he returns to festival two years after breakdown "There's a real sense of togetherness and closeness, and common language. You make these unbelievable memories and you make friends, and you just have stories for the rest of your life." Glastonbury has noted, however, that the fee number reported is "certainly not accurate". Event organiser Emily Eavis has previously revealed that Glastonbury offers a fraction of the going rate in a bid to keep costs down. The festival have also long vowed to donate a large portion of their profits to charity , with Greenpeace, WaterAid and Oxfam among those receiving cash totalling a reported £2million a year minimum. In 2017 – ahead of that year's festival that had Katy Perry, Ed Sheeran and Radiohead headlining – she told BBC Radio 6: "We're really grateful for the bands that we get, because they're basically doing it for the love of it. "It's probably less than 10 per cent of what they'd get from playing any of the other major British festivals, [so] Glastonbury relies completely on goodwill." Ultimately, the artists get money back in other ways – particularly in streaming and tour ticket sales, all of which have proven to shoot up in the wake of their Glasto appearances, especially if it's televised. 5 Rod said that the cost is "worth it" to appear on the stage Credit: Reuters 5 Appearing on the line-up exposes artists to thousands of potential new fans Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
The Irish Sun
32 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
Huge rock band forced to pull out of Glastonbury at last minute – as rapper steps in
THE Glastonbury line-up has changed at the last minute after a band were forced to pull out. American metal band Deftones has cancelled their performance tonight at 8.30pm due to illness. 2 The Deftones will no longer be playing Glastonbury Credit: Getty 2 Skepta will be stepping in and taking to the stage Credit: Getty Rapper Skepta has now stepped in and will be filling the slot. A social media post said: "Deftones have been forced to cancel tonight's 8.30pm Other Stage performance due to illness in the band. "Skepta will kindly step-in, taking the stage at 9pm. "He says: 'Let's go!!! No crew, no production but am ready to shut Glastonbury down. Victory lap time. Pre-Big Smoke 2025!'" Read More on Glastonbury Mercury Prize-winning jazz quintet Ezra Collective, who were due for a 6.45pm performance on the same stage will now play from 7pm to 8.15pm.
