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Nikita Kulishin, one of Justin Gaethje's primary sparring partners for the Topuria camp, says he suffered an identical cut from Gaethje's uppercuts in training, describing them as unusually sharp and cutting. Kulishin explained that Gaethje's game plan — developed by coach Trevor Wittman — included deliberate exaggerated head movement to the right, exploiting the fact that Topuria rarely throws high kicks, creating the angles for the uppercut combinations that proved decisive. Gaethje also repeatedly drilled a fake takedown entry that transitioned into uppercuts, the exact sequence that opened the cut on Topuria in the first round.
AgentMMA.com
