UFC 317 takeaways: Ilia Topuria's bulletproof rise to star status

USA Today

7 hours ago

The biggest storylines following UFC 317, including Ilia Topuria becoming the star the UFC so badly needs.
What mattered most at UFC 317 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas? Here are a few post-fight musings …
Terrance McKinney is an all-time hammer
In the many years I've spent covering this sport, there are few fighters who have shown the brute force of Terrance McKinney and be such a good one-way competitor.
There have been others, like the late Anthony "Rumble" Johnson, who were able to carry that style to the top of the sport and fight for titles. It's going to be much tougher in the lightweight division where McKinney (17-7 MMA, 7-4 UFC) exists, but after his 55-second submission of Viacheslav Borshchev, he once again reiterated his championship ambitions.
McKinney is incredibly tough to deal with in the opening moments of a fight. All seven of his octagon victories have come inside the opening round, as goes for all of his career win overall with the exception of one. We've seen several times now, however, that when someone can last or meet him with an equal degree of force, the tide can suddenly turn.
It would be fascinating to see McKinney string a few more of these together and put himself in position for ranked opposition. Maybe that level of consistency is impossible with his style, but it will be must-watch TV for however long he tries.
Gregory Rodrigues flatlines Jack Hermansson
There was no better momentum-setter for the pay-per-view than what Gregory Rodrigues did in the featured prelim bout at middleweight when he nearly took the pulse of Jack Hermansson with one of the scarier knockouts in recent memory.
The fight-ending left hand was all that was needed from Rodrigues (17-6 MMA, 8-3 UFC) , yet he opted to put one more entirely unneeded blow on the chin of Hermansson (24-9 MMA, 11-7 UFC), which thankfully he was able to get up after. There's a mix of blame between referee Herb Dean and Rodrigues ability to recognize a situation like that and walk off from his opponent.
Rodrigues is named "Robocop" for a reason, though, so perhaps we should known better, and the entirety of the blame should be pinned on Dean. Either way, that was a knockout that will be remembered for some time.
Beneil Dariush's big bounce back
Beneil Dariush was in need of a win as much as anyone off the card following back-to-back first-round stoppage losses that were followed by a nearly two-year layoff.
He had to dig deep and survive a first-round knockdown, but Dariush (23-6-1 MMA, 17-6-1 UFC) got the job done in a gritty unanimous decision win over Renato Moicano and is now tied for the second-most victories in UFC lightweight history behind only Jim Miller.
It would be a steep odds to bet on Dariush ever getting his elusive title shot at 155 pounds, but the performance showed he's not completely out of the race. There's still life in him at 36, and he'll get a shot to prove how much against a relevant name against perhaps the most intriguing weight class in the sport.
An intruiging future at flyweight
Joshua Van made his statement prior to the flyweight title fight when he went to war against Brandon Royval and emerged the winner by unanimous decision for what is his second victory in a 21-day stretch.
Everyone has seen potential in Van (15-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) since his UFC entry, but now at 23 and with experience under his belt, he is becoming something special and carving into his ultimate peak as a fighter. There were many eyes on this moment, and he won the fight, returned cageside then witnesses the co-headliner where champ Alexander Pantoja continued his reign to defeat Kai Kara-France by third-round submission for his fourth defense.
Pantoja (30-5 MMA, 14-3 UFC) spoke high words about Van's rise through the division prior to the event, and if there's any champion who needs a compelling challenger right now, it's him. This is a marquee title bout at 125 pounds, and hopefully the UFC promotes it as such. Getting Van into the cage for a faceoff was a good start.
Ilia Topuria sets stage for superstar status
Ilia Topuria's assent to unprecedented UFC history has been bulletproof. He did some amazing things prior to Saturday, but a first-round knockout of Charles Oliveira to become the first undefeated two-division champion in UFC history is easily his crowning achievement.
Although Oliveira might not be his best win after what he did to Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway, but it's certainly the most high profile. Topuria (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) made a dazzling amount of pre-fight prognostications, and they all came true. It has shades of Conor McGregor, but his in-cage ability might be something superior.
Claims of a media push for Topuria coming into this event are now all dismissed. If you're a doubter or a hater, it might be time to reconsider. Sure, there's room to pick apart Topuria's resume just like anyone else at the top of this sport right now, but it's an unreal stretch, and he just achieved perhaps the greatest three-fight run in UFC history.
Topuria has now entered the echelon where you must deny him at your own peril. His words might seem ridiculous, but the evidence is overwhelming. He is everything the UFC needed right now, and delivered a memorable moment that palpably invigorated life into the entire sport of MMA. That's something only stars can do it, and this felt like the moment where Topuria made his global star presence known.