Josh Emmett and Ilia Topuria, arguably the two hardest punchers at featherweight, faced off in a big main event at UFC Jacksonville on Saturday.
The undefeated Topuria, of Spanish and German descent, looked to continue the growth of his star which has seen him finish all but one of his professional fights and be embraced by global superstars such as Sergio Ramos. His mix of explosive striking, powerful wrestling, and slick submission skills have made some call him the brightest prospect in the sport at age 26. A win would even give him an argument for a title shot in his next fight as champion Alexander Volkanovski or number one contender Max Holloway have beaten back just about every contender in the top seven except for Topuria. However, Emmett has also not fought Volkanovski yet, so a win would have put him right back in title contention after his interim title fight loss to Yair Rodriguez.
The intensity in the arena felt palpable as the fight started. Emmett darted forward with punches but then skirted to the outside of the arena and circled, a common strategy of his. He darted in with a three punch combination and then got back out of range several times early on. Ilia had trouble landing counters when dealing with the blitzes and initially had trouble pressing Emmett back long enough to do damage. They had a huge explosion of punches eighty seconds in but nothing landed.
Topuria targeted the body, a strongpoint of his, immediately after. Ilia’s pressure got better and more consistent as Emmett’s explosive blitzes grew fewer and less effective. His jab constantly measured range and popped Emmett in the eye, which swelled. He opened up when he could, but most importantly he remained composed and his defense stayed sharp. The Georgian landed few leg kicks, but those he did land were full power and made Emmett react. For his part, Josh Emmett’s gameplan never wavered. He retreated and circled the octagon until he felt ready to explode with a combination while blitzing. Ilia Topuria took only two minutes to really take over control of the fight and seemingly secured a 10-9 round seemed by the time the buzzer sounded.
The second round saw Emmett’s coaches tell him to counter over the top of Ilia Topuria’s “lazy jab.” However Topuria’s jab remained a strong tool of his and Emmett was not able to really defuse it. He did do well with some good lands to the head and body and was able to stay off the fence for the first portion of the round but it only took a minute for the Spaniard to get him back to the fence. Emmett got off the fence by the halfway point of the round and the round went better for him overall, but Topuria still seemed to be the one enforcing his will on the fight.
There were times they both threw big punches in the pocket but it was rare that one ever landed clean, and neither man was rocked or hurt badly until Topuria landed a big combo on Emmett with ninety seconds left. Josh got back up and he then landed a big punch that forced Ilia to his knees, though it seemed more slip than knockdown. The leg kicks started to take a bit of a toll and become a clear advantage for Topuria. With fifteen seconds left in the round Emmett overextended and ate a massive punch that dropped him to his knees. Topuria tried to get the back and land punches but Emmett escaped and got space to recover right before the bell rang.
Ilia Topuria was clearly up two rounds when the third started, meaning Josh Emmett essentially needed to win every round left if the fight goes to a decision. Emmett and Topuria traded in the center of the cage to start the round and Emmett got the better of it but then ate a punishing leg kick that put him on one knee. Emmett retreated to the fence early and stayed there almost the whole round. His face looked quite beat up by that point. He landed a big left hook but for the most part Topuria controlled the action and hurt Emmett several times, though the toughness of Josh Emmett was on full display. Emmett did hit Topuria with several shots that have turned other men’s lights out, but Topuria’s chin remained steel. The left eye of Josh Emmett began to swell a fierce purple and his left ear looked black. The left side of his face was masked in blood and the third round was again clearly Ilia’s.
The fourth round saw Emmett be the one pressuring for the first thirty seconds but thereafter Topuria reasserted dominance. The jab also remained dominant for Topuria, blooding Emmett’s face up and interrupting his rhythm. Emmett at one point ate a monstrous leg kick when he was in a squatted stance. It caught his whole weight on that leg and really affected it, turning it more purple, but he did not go down and his gameplan stayed the same. Despite the damage he was eating Emmett did not grow tired or discouraged. Topuria had him totally outclassed.
With eighty seconds left in the round Topuria landed a left hook that dropped Emmett. He jumped on top and landed ground strikes but Josh Emmett struggled back to his feet. Topuria landed more big shots from distance and one dropped Emmett with thirty-five seconds left. He got on top in full mount and rained down hammerfists until Emmett was forced to turn to his belly after being warned by the ref to fight back. Topuria switched to a rear-naked choke attack but he could not get it in before the buzzer.
It was an amazing feat that Emmett was still kicking after twenty minutes of a beatdown, but the more incredible one was the performance Topuria was having. The doctor checked on Emmett between rounds and although his eye was completely purple, Emmett passed the test to prove he could see out of it. Emmett clearly needed a finish before the round started and he fought like it. He put Topuria on the back foot and for the first time Topuria seemed unsure of himself, reacting more than any other time in the fight to the strikes he ate. He still popped Emmett with the calf kick and the jab but Ilia could not pressure him back to the fence and take over, though Emmett was forced to stop constantly coming forward to preserve energy.
Josh threw almost nothing but overhands, from both hands in both stances. Few landed after the strong start but midway through the round he had a good body-head combo. Topuria reacted by shooting a powerful takedown and getting in top half. Emmett got to a knee against the fence but Ilia hung on his back. The position stalled for a while, Ilia was content to press on Emmett and land knees to the thigh. Emmett did a Granby roll, and then another when Topuria did not get off him. They scrambled across the full octagon but the grappling prowess of Topuria was clear as even all that could not get him off of Emmett. In fact, the scramble ended up with Ilia taking the back with both hooks in, which he kept until the end of the round.
The scorecards at the end of the fight were, as expected, lopsided in favor of Topuria, with him getting a number of 10-8 rounds (50-44, 50-42, 49-45). After the bout Topuria called for a title shot next, at the prompting of Daniel Cormier.
Official Result: Ilia Topuria def. Josh Emmett by unanimous decision (50-44, 50-42, 49-45)
