Josh Emmett explains why he believes Ilia Topuria is a “great matchup” for him at UFC Jacksonville
Josh Emmett thinks Ilia Topuria is a great matchup for him.
Emmett is set to headline UFC Jacksonville on Saturday against Topuria in a very intriguing featherweight matchup. Emmett is coming off a stoppage loss to Yair Rodriguez for the interim featherweight title and although it was a tough loss, he is making a quick turnaround to face Topuria.
Although Ilia Topuria is undefeated and has looked impressive in the UFC, Josh Emmett believes stylistically this is a good matchup for him.
“I’ve been in these big fights. You look at the resume, the fighters that I’ve fought. It goes hand-in-hand. I think stylistically this is a great matchup,” Emmett said to Shakiel Mahjouri. “It’s nice that I get to fight someone of my height and similar to my stature, I’m not fighting, some guy 5’11”, 6-foot. I fought people on the regional scene up to 6’5″. But, it’s nice. Stylistically, it’s a great matchup for me. Ilia, he’s a well-rounded fighter. He’s good but I’ve been preparing really well for this. June 24th will be my night.”
Emmett is one inch shorter than Topuria but does have a one-inch reach advantage, which is something that doesn’t happen often for the Team Alpha Male product. The last time Emmett had a reach advantage was back in 2016 when he beat Scott Holtzman, while Mirsad Bektic had the same reach as him – which took place in 2019.
Whether or not the reach advantage or being the same size as Ilia Topuria will play a role at UFC Jacksonville is to be seen. But, Josh Emmett is confident that his skills match up well against Topuria and believes he has all the tools to get his hand raised.
Emmett enters his UFC Jacksonville main event as a sizeable +260 underdog against Topuria.
Topics:
Ilia Topuria Josh Emmett UFC
