UFC Champion Ilia Topuria makes bold KO prediction for boxing crossover against Terence Crawford

Ilia Topuria is confident that he could knockout Terence Crawford in the boxing ring.

Crawford is currently gearing up to face-off with Canelo Alvarez on September 13, in what is set to be the biggest commercial fight of the year.

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As Canelo and Crawford go head-to-head this weekend, talks have already began over where the winner of the bout will go next.

One man that has made it clear that he is eyeing the winner of the super-fight for his boxing debut is Topuria.

That being said, the one name that the UFC lightweight champion keeps calling out for is Crawford.

While Topuria would hold the advantage over Crawford if they met in the Octagon, the former seems to think the same goes for inside the boxing ring.

He explained: “I won’t talk about what would happen between me and Crawford in an octagon, I’ll talk about what would happen in a ring.

“I put him to sleep in the first contact.”

Crawford is anticipated to be retiring after fighting Canelo in Las Vegas, perhaps that is why Topuria has made such a bold prediction as we are not so likely to see them fight.

Who is likely to be the next man to fight Ilia Topuria?

Topuria claimed his second UFC title after knocking out Charles Oliveira in June, as he simultaneously extended his MMA record to 17-0.

As attention fell onto whether or not anyone can hand Topuria a defeat, fighters began to call out for their opportunity to do just that.

During Topuria’s post-fight interview, Paddy Pimblett entered the cage to express his interest in fighting the freshly crowned lightweight champion.

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Pimblett said: “Well done, lad, well done, that was a heavy knockout, but you will never knock me out.

“You know you can’t knock me out. I finish you, little man.”

Aside from the expected UFC contenders like Pimblett and Arman Tsarukyan, boxing’s Conor Benn fancies his chance in a crossover fight.

As Benn gears up for his rematch with Chris Eubank Jr, he posted on his social media: “If any of these f***ing UFC fighters want to come over to boxing.

“Or any of these MMA lot want to come over to boxing, if you fancy somebody, you can come and get it…nasty.”

While it remains undecided, Topuria has plenty of options and whoever clashes with ‘El Matador’ next is certain to be a huge name.