Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Ilia Topuria struggled to find the words.
Asked what life's been like since Dana White fastened a title belt–earned with a shocking dismantling of pound-for-pound elite Alex Volkanovski–around his waist eight months ago in southern California, the 27-year-old's cool, confident veneer briefly vanished.
He blinked. He sighed. He looked around. And then, as if he were back at the Honda Center in Anaheim stealing the UFC 298 show all over again, he smiled.
The sort of smile only a champion can understand.
"When you allow yourself to dream something big and then you have the opportunity to actually achieve it, it can't be described with simple words," he said.