Ilia Topuria continued the unbeaten start to his career at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 19 event.
In what was unquestionably his most high-profile win to date, Topuria (10-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) took out veteran Damon Jackson (18-4-1 MMA, 1-2-1 UFC) with a first-round knockout, courtesy of some devastating hands.
The 23-year-old from Spain attacked Jackson to the body, then followed it up with a savage head-shot for the highlight-reel finish.
Check out the replay of the stoppage below (via Twitter):
Rips & Clips!
[ Tune in on #ESPNPlus & ESPN2 ] pic.twitter.com/pKZEBGGh4B
Ilia Topuria ENDS IT in half a round.
— UFC (@ufc) December 6, 2020
For Topuria, the fight went exactly as planned. Afterward, he told Jon Anik that he predicted the early finish.
“I was expecting the first-round knockout,” Topuria said. “In all my interviews that’s what I was saying.”