Justin Gaethje broke down the skill set of Ilia Topuria ahead of their UFC lightweight title unification bout at UFC Freedom 250.
Gaethje, the interim UFC lightweight champion, meets Topuria, the UFC lightweight champion, in the main event of UFC Freedom 250, which takes place on June 14 at the White House in Washington, D.C. It’s one of the biggest MMA fights of the year, and it should be an absolutely amazing scrap when it goes down between two of the most exciting strikers in the sport today.
Justin Gaethje Sizes Up Ilia Topuria
Speaking to John Morgan of Grind City Media, Gaethje was asked to assess Topuria ahead of UFC Freedom 250, and “The Highlight” broke him down.
“I do know that he’s very good. I think everybody has different styles of fighting. His specifically is more of a boxing style when it comes to range, and space, and timing, and his position. He’s shorter than me, and you really don’t want to have your head be too much higher than these guys that are throwing missiles,” Gaethje said.
“Position is going to be the biggest factor in this fight. I have to be so stubborn with my position. I have to control space, I have to control his feet, and I really have to be diligent in my defense. I have to constantly be winning the angle battle and the distance battle.”
Justin Gaethje is a Massive Underdog
The latest betting odds for Topuria vs. Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250 see the American as a huge +500 underdog, with Topuria as a -700 favorite.
Given that Topuria is arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the sport, it’s no surprise at all that he’s the favorite to win this fight. He has insane KO power, he has a great ground game, and he really hasn’t shown any holes in his game at all aside from a surprise flash knockdown against Jai Herbert in a fight he ended up winning by devastating stoppage later on. Other than the Herbert fight, he really hasn’t faced any scares inside the Octagon.
Gaethje is one of the most heavy-handed punchers and strong-footed kickers in the lightweight division, and he showed against Paddy Pimblett in his last fight at UFC 324 that he’s still very much at the top of his game. But he has been knocked out several times during his UFC career, and now he’s taking on one of the most powerful boxers in the sport in Topuria. So, as Gaethje said, he needs to be defensively aware the entire time this fight is going on, because just one big shot on the chin could put his lights out.
Regardless of how this fight plays out, it’s going to be a good one for the fans, as both Topuria and Gaethje love to stand and trade while fight fans cheer them on. Gaethje is a massive underdog, but he’s going to do everything in his power to get his hand raised, and this should be an amazing fight next month at UFC Freedom 250.
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