Josh Emmett and Ilia Topuria are featherweights with power that transcend their weight class. Chins will be tested as Emmett and Topuria work their way up the featherweight ladder. Their tilt headlines UFC Fight Night at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville on Saturday.
Emmett (18-3) enters UFC Fight Night as the veteran fighter with eight more fights than Topuria and a six-year lead in professional MMA experience. The heavy-handed featherweight has a huge chip on his shoulder after falling short in an interim UFC featherweight title fight against Yair Rodriguez in February. Emmett is the type of fighter to let his actions speak for him. In a sport that often rewards over-the-top characters, Emmett has built a regular presence in main events and main cards on the strength of his knockout power and superhero toughness.
"I didn't go to school for acting. I'm not a character," Emmett told CBS Sports. "I can fight. I've played sports my entire life. I wrestled from when I was a young child all the way through college. I can go out there, compete and win.
"You see a lot of people trying to act like Conor [McGregor]. I can fight. I got into this business because I wanted to fight, I wanted to become world champion and I wanted to make some cash."
Check out the full interview with Josh Emmett below.
Topuria (13-0) teems with confidence rivaled only by his viciousness. The undefeated fighter is a prolific finisher with one sole decision win on his record. Topuria won fans over with his mean streak inside the Octagon, defeating his last four UFC opponents -- including Bryce Mitchell and Ryan Hall -- by stoppage. Topuria could realistically find himself challenging UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski next, assuming both men win their upcoming fights. Topuria would be the only fresh fight for Volkanovski currently ranked in the top nine coming off a win. As far as Topuria is concerned, his half of that fate is sealed.
"I'm stronger than him everywhere the fight takes place. Everywhere," Topuria told CBS Sports. "I'm younger than him, hungrier than him, faster than him, stronger than him, more powerful. I have everything.
"I'm going to beat Josh Emmett and I'm the next guy in line without any doubt. Who else deserves to fight for the championship more than me?"
Check out the full interview with Ilia Topuria below.
Saturday's co-main event features women's flyweights Amanda Ribas and Maycee Barber. Ribas is a two-to-one favorite despite alternating wins and losses in her last five fights. The bubbly fighter has faced an overall higher level of opposition with her recent losses coming to title challenger Katlyn Chookagian and contender Marina Rodriguez. Barber is riding high with four consecutive decision wins, but two of those wins are split decisions against cold fighters Andrea Lee and Miranda Maverick.
"She is an exciting fighter," Ribas said at media day this week. "She has hype, too, so this is really good, too -- not just for me as a person with sponsors and all, but for a fighter, a professional. When the UFC put me against her, it's awesome because the audience wants to see. This is amazing.
"… I hope I can get the win. I've been training for that. God blessed me. Arms to the top. I think, of course, it depends the way the fight goes. I've showed with a lot of punches and kicks and on the ground and really exciting and then somebody wins with a really great bonus of the night. I hope (I) can get top five."
The undercard fills out with three more matchups that should be action-packed. Heavyweight sluggers Justin Tafa and Austen Lane are set to throw down in a featured bout. Both men carry heavy hands with all six of Tafa's wins coming by knockout and all 15 of Lane's pro fights ending before the final bell. Plus, Gabriel Santos is set for an important showdown against David Onama at featherweight. And opening the main card is a middleweight battle between rising contenders Brendan Allen and Bruno Silva.
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Below is the rest of the fight card for Saturday night with the latest odds from Caesars Sportsbook before we get to a prediction and pick on the main event.
UFC Fight Night card, odds
| Favorite | Underdog | Weightclass |
|---|---|---|
| Ilia Topuria -340 | Josh Emmett +270 | Featherweight |
| Amanda Ribas -200 | Maycee Barber +170 | Women's flyweight |
| Justin Tafa -175 | Austen Lane +150 | Heavyweight |
| Gabriel Santos -230 | David Onama +190 | Featherweight |
| Brendan Allen -190 | Bruno Silva +160 | Middleweight |
UFC Fight Night viewing information
Date: June 24 | Start time: 3 p.m. ET (main card)
Location: VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena -- Jacksonville, Florida
TV channel: ABC | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
Prediction
Josh Emmett vs. Ilia Topuria: Topuria as a favorite is reasonable but placing Emmett as a +270 underdog is unkind to the veteran fighter. Emmett has a wealth of experience and is nearly impossible to finish. Both fighters rank among the hardest hitters at featherweight and are blessed with chins that have withstood 33 of 34 combined fights despite only blocking 62% of incoming strikes at the UFC level. Topuria excels with combination boxing that incorporates body strikes. Emmett tends to operate from the outside, bouncing into range to land big bombs. Emmett's tendency to block with a high guard could make him susceptible to body blows. Topuria also has much better submissions and wrestling that overcame Bryce Mitchell. Emmett can hurt Topuria -- we saw Jai Herbert nearly stop Topuria up a weight class -- but Topuria seems to have the greater overall skills. Topuria via SUB3
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