UFC 298 witnessed the wrath of Ilia Topuria. The Georgian-spaniard fighter took center stage when he sent the boogeyman of the featherweight division, Alexander Volkanovski to the canvas with a splendid knockout in the second round. His win against ‘The Great’ clinched him the featherweight title. Topuria’s glam was already gigantic and after the win seems like the ‘El Matador’ chic is on seven skies.
Topuria had time and time again asserted͏ that his charm and popularity in Spain is such that if the UFC scheduled ͏a fight in the Spanish ͏backyard, they would sell out the entire event in 5 minutes. ͏This might have seemed far-fetched at first, but after witnessing the hero’s reception of Topuria at Real Madrid’s home ground, the MMA community is convinced that ‘El Matador’s popularity is second to none.
🚨ILIA TOPURIA AT THE BERNABEU pic.twitter.com/lYYGZ9kZHm
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) February 25, 2024
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A week after his spectacular victory, Topuria arrived at Real Madrid’s home ground, Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Spain to showcase his featherweight gold in front of the crowd. ‘El Matador’ was not only praised by the crowd with claps but also with a standing ovation from them. To put this in American perspective, it would have been like a fighter getting praise at the stacked Super Bowl event.
Real Madrid showcasing Ilia Topuria at their battle with Sevilla is a piece of huge news and this might convince UFC head honcho, Dana White for UFC Spain, Interestingly, White is also interested in a UFC event at Santiago Bernabéu that can seat approximately 85,000 onlookers. And this star reception by the Spanish crowd for Topuria has convinced the MMA community to compare Conor McGregor‘s legacy to Topuria.
Ilia Topuria might mirror Conor McGregor’s legacy
Ilia Topuria strolled͏ confidently toward the field, the ro͏ar͏ing cheers of the crowd fueling his excite͏ment. As he made his way, he exchanged friendly handshakes with fellow athletes, among them the ͏ico͏nic Spanish legend, Sergio Ramos. This acceptance shook the entire MMA community. Some of the comments by the fans are as follows:-
Starting off, a fan stated that ‘El Matador’ oozes that Conor McGregor aura.
He really does have the McGregor aura
— Super Fan🇮🇪 | CHIPS.GG (@McGregorRousey2) February 25, 2024
Furthermore, a fan stated that Topuria might be one of the biggest stars in the sport right now considering the fact that McGregor and Jon Jones are nearly retired and Islam Makhachev lacks this level of popularity.
Easily the biggest star in the sport rn. Mcgregor half retired, Jon half retired, Islam only other mega star and he doesn’t have this motion.
— Sal❄️🏔️ (@sallly12_17) February 25, 2024
Moreover, a fan saw some gain from the promotion due to Topuria’s popularity.
M A S S I V E F O R T H E U F C !
— M A L I (@SamaliTimi) February 25, 2024
A fan was flabbergasted by the star potential of Topuria.
Really didn’t realise the superstar power this guy has…insane👏🏼
— Kiwi Gyms (@KiwiGyms) February 25, 2024
Additionally, a fan even went as far as to quote that Topuria might be the next featherweight goat after Alexander Volkanovski and Jose Aldo.
Next featherweight Goat 🌹🐂
— Cee (@CeewatchesMMA) February 25, 2024
Bantamweight champion Sean͏ O’Malley recently chall͏eng͏ed Topuria’s stardom. However, according to fans, it seems like Topuria is͏ a much bigger star than ‘Suga’.
Bro actually a bigger star than O’Malley
— Lamb Sauce Will (@LambSauceWill) February 25, 2024
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Last but not least, a fan asserted that Topuria is the next Conor McGregor.
The next Conor
— Vicky junior (@Vickyjnrmm) February 25, 2024
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From the reactions of the fans, they were most definitely left speechless by Topuria’s stardom. They compare Conor Mcgregor’s legacy to ‘El Matador’. Nonetheless, there is no doubt about Topuria’s stardom in the MMA community anymore. What’s your reaction to Topuria’s stardom?