Ilia Topuria reveals strange wine-drinking tradition during weight-cut for fights - "We celebrate everything"

Ilia Topuria is the most-talked about featherweight in the UFC besides the division's current champion Alexander Volkanovski. The eagerness to see the pair square off after the Georgian Spaniard's masterclass performance against Josh Emmett is at an all-time high. Thus, interest in him has increased tenfold.

A video of him drinking wine has been making the rounds. In the video, he describes the benefits of drinking during his weight-cuts, claiming that dehydrating himself more than usual helps him lose water weight more easily. Furthermore, he pointed out that drinking wine makes him feel good.

It's a noteworthy revelation given that fighters are often extremely irritable during their weight-cuts, and for good reason. Ilia Topuria's exact words regarding the subject are as follows:

"It's something that always worked for me every time that I cut weight. It helps me feel good and I follow traditions. Dehydrating more than usual helps me lose weight. Tomorrow morning I'll be back in the sauna. I'm almost at weight, I'll cut a few grams and I'll be ready."

However, the UFC featherweight power-puncher isn't the only fighter that's used wine to help him prepare for a bout. Formerly undefeated middleweight contender Paulo Costa famously used wine prior to his disastrous title fight with Israel Adesanya at UFC 253.

According to the Brazilian, he struggled to sleep the night before the fight, prompting him to drink a bottle of wine to induce sleepiness. Regardless of the validity of Costa's past claim, there was a night and day difference between his performance and Topuria's recent win.

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Who will Ilia Topuria fight next?

In the aftermath of his dominant win over an absurdly tough Josh Emmett, Ilia Topuria emerged as a potential title contender in the featherweight division. In his post-fight interview, he called for a title fight. However, given the possibility that he may not fight for a title next, he was open to another fight as well.

He claimed at the post-fight press conference after his bout with Emmett that the only other fight he's willing to accept would be a fight with former featherweight champion Max Holloway, if it's booked in Spain. Otherwise, he's content to simply sit out and wait for a title shot.