Losing to a champion doesn’t always mean the end of your career trajectory. Sometimes it’s just a speed bump on the road to continued success. The best fighters in the world can bounce back from devastating defeats and prove they still belong at the elite level. What separates truly great champions from good ones often shows up in the quality of opposition they face. And two-division champion Ilia Topuria has been absolutely destroying everyone the UFC puts in front of him. <\/p>
The Georgian-Spanish fighter held the featherweight title and now the lightweight title. Here’s where things get fascinating. All three of Ilia Topuria’s most recent opponents won their very next fights after losing to him. That’s a remarkable pattern that doesn’t happen by accident, and it tells fans something important about the level of competition Topuria has been facing.<\/p>
Let’s break down what happened with each of these fighters after Topuria knocked them out. Charles Oliveira took the worst knockout loss of his entire career when Topuria starched him at UFC <\/a>317. Many people wondered if the Brazilian legend’s chin was finally cracked for good. Just 15 weeks later, Oliveira stepped back into the octagon at UFC Rio and looked phenomenal. He became the first person ever to finish Mateusz Gamrot inside the distance, locking up a nasty rear-naked choke in the second round. That’s not the performance of a washed-up fighter. That’s a world-class grappler proving he’s still dangerous.<\/p>