Ilia Topuria ’s rise to stardom has been one of the biggest stories of 2024. The UFC featherweight champion has surprised many with his explosion in popularity, including his own coach, Jorge Climent . Climent has been ultra confident in Topuria’s capabilities and even predicted that his pupil would knock out Alexander Volkanovski to win the UFC featherweight title—something many didn’t see possible. However, although Climent thinks the world of Topuria (15-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC), he didn’t see coming his rise in popularity in Spain, at least not at the levels it’s played out. “Having confidence in what we are capable of, doesn’t mean I had the vision of what we’re seeing today,” Climent told MMA Junkie in Spanish . “I never thought we were going to have the reach that we have now or be recognized in the manner in which we’re being recognized.