#iliatopuria #ufc #mma
Ilia Topuria (Georgian: ილია თოფურია) (born January 21, 1997) is a Georgian and Spanish professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Lightweight and Featherweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of June 27, 2023, he is #5 in the UFC featherweight rankings
Topuria was born in Halle Westfalen, Germany to Georgian parents. At the age of seven he moved to Georgia with his family where he started practicing Greco-Roman Wrestling at school. At the age of 15 he moved to live in Alicante in Spain, where he started practicing martial arts at the Climent Club. In 2015, he made his debut as a professional in local competitions.
After starting his career with 4 straight submission wins on the Spanish regional scene and winning a belt in Mix Fight Events promotion. In 2018 he made his first international fight in Cage MMA Finland. In the same year, in May, he became the first Georgian black belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu alongside his brother Alex Topuria. Months later he received the opportunity to fight for the Cage Warriors Bantamweight Championship at the Lotto Arena in Antwerp, Belgium. Ilia failed to make the agreed weight so despite winning the fight quickly, he did not get the belt.
In 2019 he signed with Brave Combat Federation. Ilia made his debut in the promotion in Bogota, Colombia, defeating opponent Luis Gomez in the first round by submission; which leads him to get the award for best performance of the night. On November 15, 2019, in Bahrain, he won his second fight in BRAVE by defeating Steven Goncalves by KO in the first round.