Ilia Topuria should be 2024 ‘Fighter of the Year,’ says former UFC veteran Matt Brown
Former UFC veteran Matt Brown believes Ilia Topuria should be a lock for the 2024 “Fighter of the Year.”
Topuria has certainly made a strong case for himself. “El Matador” knocked out Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway. Topuria actually became the first fighter to score a KO win over “Blessed.”
While Alex Pereira once seemed to be a lock for “Fighter of the Year,” Topuria has gained some steam down the stretch.
Ilia Topuria Gets Matt Brown’s Vote for ‘Fighter of the Year’
In a new edition of MMAFighting.com‘s “The Fighter vs. The Writer,” Matt Brown told Damon Martin that he believes the quality of Ilia Topuria’s opponents puts him over the top as the 2024 “Fighter of the Year.”
“Alex didn’t knock out three pound-for-pound greats. Ilia knocked out two pound-for-pound greats,” Brown said on the latest episode of The Fighter vs. The Writer. “As great as those guys were that Alex fought, they weren’t Holloway or Volkanovski.
“I don’t think anybody expected anybody on this planet to do what Ilia did. If Max and Volk had fought 170-pounder guys, I don’t think they would expected for both of them to get knocked out. As impressive as Alex was … this is one of those where it’s too bad we can’t have two Fighter of the Year awards, because they both deserve it. You don’t want to take a damn thing away from Alex.”
Topuria is likely headed for a rematch with Alexander Volkanovski. The two exchanged pleasantries inside the Octagon following UFC 308. Another possible option if Volkanovski can’t get the next featherweight title fight is Diego Lopes. We’ll see what the UFC brass ultimately decides for the next 145-pound title fight.
