Ilia Topuria suffered the first loss of his career after absorbing a ton of damage in his main event showdown against Justin Gaethje at UFC White House and one look at his face explained why his coaches stopped the fight after the fourth round.
With both of his eyes almost closed, and Gaethje blasting him with a brutal body shot just before the round ended, Topuria’s coaches couldn’t fathom seeing him take any more punishment. After the fight, Topuria made no excuses for the loss and vowed to come back to avenge his loss and reclaim his title.
But Topuria’s longtime friend Merab Dvalishvili, who is preparing for a wrestling match against Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo in RAF on July 11, says the former UFC lightweight champion was greatly diminished after the first round when he took a punch to the eye that already had him visually impaired.
“My brother Ilia, unfortunately, he lost but he showed a great fight,” Dvalishvili told MMA Fighting. “Fight was really tough. Unfortunately, Ilia was fighting blind since the first round. I think one moment Justin Gaethje threw a punch like this [with his thumb extended], I think he eye poked him. It was even worse and then Ilia [was] blind in both eyes. He [wanted] to keep fighting. He almost finished Justin Gaethje from the body shot. He even dropped him.
“If Ilia continued [throwing] hammerfists or throwing punches, he would finish him. But Ilia chased the submission and then Justin Gaethje somehow survived. It was a tough fight but I’m proud of my brother Ilia. He showed a great, great fight.”
Topuria was pretty clearly affected by the damage done to his eyes, because he had immense swelling on his face not to mention the cuts he absorbed as well.
While he would never take anything away from Gaethje’s win, Dvalishvili knows Topuria was compromised for a huge part of that fight, which is why he really wants to see a rematch once both fighters are healthy again.
“Yes when you got eye poked or you broke this [orbital] bone, you are blind pretty much,” Dvalishvili said. “That affects the fight. That was the main thing. Ilia was fighting blind. That’s what Ilia said.
“I have very big confidence, Ilia is not only going to come back, he will come back even stronger. He will come so motivated. He’s special. When I say special, we all know he’s special. He’s proved it many times. That wasn’t his night. Like I said, it was a couple of things. He got eye poked and he got a [broken] bone in his nose, I believe. Then that affects his fight. Now, he will come back and he will win his belt back and he will continue his winning streak again.”
As a special guest attending the UFC White House card, Dvalishvili said the entire experience was amazing but Topuria’s loss really left a sour taste in his mouth. In fact, Dvalishvili took the loss very hard because it was difficult to see his friend lose in such dramatic fashion.
“It was really heartbreaking,” Dvalishvili said. “Since that, I was very stressed. I’ve been checking online all day [on] comments, it keeps going, especially in my country. It’s been very stressful. After the fight, it’s been very stressful.
“I haven’t really slept good. I’ve been checking online, so much talk, so much nonsense talking and people have so many crazy opinions. It’s been hard. I feel bad for Ilia but I know he will come back very strong.
Since the fight ended, Gaethje shut down Topuria getting an immediate rematch but he also stated that he’s expecting to compete again after briefly considering retirement.
There are a long list of contenders vying for the first crack at Gaethje’s title but Arman Tsarukyan is likely the top candidate.
Still, Dvalishvili hopes Gaethje sticks around long enough to cross paths with Topuria again, because he expects a much different result if they meet again.
“I believe if they fight again, Ilia will win all the times, but it was Justin Gaethje’s moment that day,” Dvalishvili said. “Hopefully Justin Gaethje is not going to retire. He will give Ilia a rematch and in rematch, I believe Ilia can win.
“But they are both tough fighters and Justin Gaethje, he can hit really hard. He either knocks people out or gets knocked out. That’s the type of fighter he is. Much respect for him.”
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