‘We have a star’… Dana White compares Ilia Topuria to Muhammad Ali after UFC 317 KO prediction comes true

Ilia Topuria quickly slept the Brazilian to deliver on his promise and become the UFC lightweight champion on Saturday night.

In doing so, he impressed UFC boss Dana White, who compared the UFC 317 star to boxing’s biggest legend during a post-fight press conference.

Dana White compares Ilia Topuria to Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali was known for predicting the round in which he would knock out his opponents.

The heavyweight legend famously said he’d “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee,” when he predicted a first-round knockout victory over Sonny Liston, who was left flat on the floor after just 132 seconds into their rematch in 1965.

Ali was the first thing that came to mind when White reacted to Topuria’s impressive UFC 317 win.

“I mean, you couldn’t do it better,” the UFC CEO said.

“It was like some Ali s—. Saying ‘I’m going to knock him out in the first round,’ and he viciously knocked him out in the first round.

“I think tonight was his big night, and we have a star on our hands.”

Dana White hated Ilia Topuria’s face-off with Paddy Pimblett

Lightweight contender Paddy Pimblett had a front row seat when a new 155lb champion was crowned.

Footage of his live reaction to Topuria knocking out Oliveira has gone viral since UFC 317.

So has his in-cage face-off with the new lightweight king, whom he has been beefing with for years.

Security stepped in when Pimblett and Topuria’s staredown threatened to turn into a fight.

When he was done making Ali comparisons, White expressed his dislike for the Topuria vs. Pimblett face-off.

“That’s not really what we do,” he said about the scuffle.

“I don’t give a s— if it was fun to watch or not. That shouldn’t happen.

“It was a bad call by whoever the hell let them in there.”