Ilia Topuria (right) and Alexander Volkanovsky (left) after fight in UFC 298. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram
Keeping an eye on the main fight of UFC 298, TJ Dillashaw has a controversial opinion about performance Alexander Volkanovsky before Ilia Topuria. In the view of the former bantamweight champion (up to 61,2 kg.), the Australian was afraid of his opponent and was unable to develop his strategy as he normally did against his rivals.
“For me, I don’t know what Volk’s game plan was. I wish I could be in his head before making a full judgement. I know he was scared of the potency. I could tell from the way he was fighting that he was very scared of Topuria's power – which he should have been, to a certain extent,” Dillashaw said in an interview with 'JAXXON PODCAST'.
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When he continued speaking, TJ stated that he predicted a dramatic end to the confrontation between the athletes.
“He has never fought like this in the past. In the first two rounds, all he was doing was throwing kicks. He wasn't preparing the kicks, he was just throwing them, hoping Topuria would block them. I thought he was trying to slow down his arms. Every time Topuria got close, he would retreat and move away. As soon as I saw that, I thought, 'Damn, he's going to get caught.' He was struggling with fear. He was worried about power. That's where he went wrong. He was afraid of his strength and fought in fear,” he concluded.
Ilia Topuria (left) fighting against Alexander Volkanovsky (dir.) in UFC 298. Photo: Reproduction/Twitter @UFCNews
New featherweight champion (up to 65,7kg.) in the UFC, Ilia Topuria remained undefeated in his career, ending a run of five title defenses by Volkanovski. The athlete became the first opponent in the category to defeat the Australian.
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