Ilia Topuria reacts to Paddy Pimblett stopping ‘average level fighter’ Michael Chandler at UFC 314
Ilia Topuria believes Paddy Pimblett did what he needed to do against a lower-level fighter in his win at UFC 314.
Pimblett dominated and eventually stopped Michael Chandler in third round in the co-main event from Miami to improve to 7-0 inside the octagon. Topuria and Pimblett have a heated rivalry dating back several years, and while appearing on the Joe Rogan Experience, Topuria reacted to the performance.
“He did a great job,” Topuria said of Pimblett. “He did what he had to do, but for me... I’m going to be completely honest with you, for me, Chandler, he never was an extraordinary fighter. He was like an average level fighter. Who did he beat in the UFC? ...
“So he beat Dan Hooker and Tony Ferguson, when [Ferguson] was almost 40 years old.”
Topuria was a focal point of UFC 314 after he officially vacated the featherweight title, which was won by Alexander Volkanovski in the main event against Diego Lopes. The undefeated Topuria is making the move to lightweight, and hopes to face Islam Makhachev for the 155-pound title in his next bout.
As far as Chandler goes, Topuria understands the former Bellator champ has a fan-friendly style, but that’s not what it’s all about when it comes to greatness in the sport.
“At the end of the day, you see wars,” Topuria said. “It’s a very competitive fight. You see almost a bar fight. You see two guys in the middle of the octagon exchanging punches, but you don’t see technique. You don’t see skills.
“You’ll see a great fight, because as fans, it’s very entertaining to watch fights like that. But if you really think about it, you don’t see skills in that fight. You don’t see someone trying to take you down, control you, some great submissions, great transitions, striking — see a guy that’s looking for combinations, looking for his moment, creating spaces. ...
“It’s just wild dogs... and that’s cool. You need guys like him. ... I would never recommend to someone, ‘Watch this guy and learn something.’”