Ilia Topuria Expects Volkanovski to Be ‘One of the Easier Fights of My Career’

Ilia Topuria believes he’ll dominate Alexander Volkanovksi in their upcoming featherweight title fight.

Topuria released a theatrical trailer predicting victory right after his booking against Volkanovksi was announced for UFC 298 on Feb. 17. While “El Matador” has been on a collision course with Volkanovski for a while now, the matchup was slightly delayed when “The Great” stepped in a for a short notice rematch against lightweight champ Islam Makhachev at UFC 294 this past October.

Volkanovski went on to suffer a head kick knockout in the first round and later attributed the loss to accepting the fight on short notice. The featherweight champ believes people have somewhat forgotten who he really is due to the manner of his last loss, but he has vowed to give Topuria a a lesson in humility in their fight.

Meanwhile, Topuria’s confidence is on a whole new level. While “El Matador” doesn’t exactly see any holes in Volkanovski’s game, he believes he has an answer for anything “The Great” has to offer.

“He doesn’t stand a chance,” Topuria told ESPN Deportes. “He has zero opportunity. I don’t see any holes, but I can tell how he attacks. The only attack I see is that he is going to kick my legs. That’s the only thing that he can do…He has good cardio, but everyone has good cardio when they’re not under pressure. When you’re walking forward, you’ll have good cardio. But when you’re in trouble, cardio tends to fade away, and this will be the case. He will have someone in front of him that never goes back.”

The undefeated contender expects Volkanovski to be among the easier opponents of his career.

“I think it’s going to be perfect,” he said. “It’s going to be a masterpiece, to hit and don’t get hit. That’s what you will see in this combat. You’ll see an authentic mixed martial artist…I don’t have any doubt that the finish will come, and it will be one of the easier fights of my career so far.”