Josh Emmett believes Ilia Topuria could struggle against bigger lightweights: ‘They could definitely give him problems’
Josh Emmett remains the only fighter on the UFC roster who managed to go all five rounds with Ilia Topuria so he definitely has a different perspective on what to expect out of the former featherweight champion as he embarks on a new career at 155 pounds.
The only evidence that currently exists for Topuria as a lightweight in the UFC came back in 2022 when he accepted a short-notice fight against Jai Herbert. While he ultimately scored a jaw-dropping knockout that earned him a Performance of the Night bonus, Topuria also faced some early struggles after Herbert hurt him badly on the feet.
There’s no doubt Topuria has improved since then, but Emmett knows from his past as a lightweight before making an even bigger impact at 145 pounds that size really does matter in the UFC.
“I definitely think they could definitely give him problems,” Emmett told MMA Fighting about Topuria’s chance against bigger, stronger lightweights. “He’s kind of a smaller stature guy. He’s shorter. He doesn’t have as big of a frame. I think I was actually taller than him or just as tall but much larger framed.”
Now to his credit, Topuria has been shorter and more compact than many of his opponents in the UFC and he still boasts an undefeated record while delivering several vicious finishes along the way.
In just his past two fights, Topuria has flattened both Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway — arguably two of the greatest featherweights of all time — and now he’s looking to do the same in his new division.
“He’s so well-rounded. He’s so technically sound,” Emmett said about Topuria. “He comes from a jiu-jitsu and wrestling background, but he’s found success with his hands. His boxing is super sharp. He packs some power, but I don’t know. I think he’ll do well.
“I think he does well, but I want to see those fights against those top three, top five lightweights and then see how he kind of stacks up and how he does because those guys have much larger frames and they’re way bigger than he is.”
That said, Emmett has faith that Topuria is making the correct adjustments and getting his body ready to deal with competing in a bigger weight class.
“I think given the time frame, I think he took that Jai Herbert fight on short notice as well, if he has a few months to prepare, three or four months, I think he has a great team, strength coaches, everything, it seems he has access to a lot of things,” Emmett said. “So I’m sure they’ll get him dialed in, and he’ll be on point.”
As far as his own aspirations go, Emmett is looking to re-inject himself into title contention when he faces Lerone Murphy on Saturday at UFC Vegas 105.
After sitting out for all of 2024 to recover and allow his body to fully heal from nagging injuries, Emmett is excited to show a better version of himself than the person who fought Topuria less than two years ago.
“I know a lot of people were saying you haven’t fought since [2023], you took no damage, what’s going on?” Emmett explained. “There’s a lot of things my close circle, friends and family and coaches knew what I’ve been dealing with. That’s why Emmett 2.0 is here, and I’m ready to unleash it on April 5.
“The biggest fights in my career, my life, the most important things with interim title, Ilia, [Calvin] Kattar, even [Bryce] Mitchell … I was fighting these guys at a fraction of myself. I’m back to 100 percent. It’s not the 25, 30 percent Josh Emmett anymore. It’s going to be the 110 percent, and you guys will definitely see on April 5. I just have to go out there and beat Murphy in a devastating fashion, and I could be right back in the mix. I know Volkanovski has been talking about calling out Movsar [Evloev] after he wins, if he wins, but we’ll see how things play out. First, I’ve got to go out there April 5, put Murphy away, get my hand raised, and then I’d like to be out in Miami the next weekend.”