Former UFC fighter Anthony Smith has an interesting view on Ilia Topuria’s fighting future following his UFC Freedom 250 defeat.

On Sunday night, Ilia Topuria suffered his first loss as a professional mixed martial artist. While he looked good for portions of the bout against Justin Gaethje, it was ‘The Highlight’ who was able to get the win and the title, and he left a pretty lasting mark on Ilia’s face in the process.

RELATED: Ilia Topuria may never be the same after UFC Freedom 250 loss, says former UFC star: “We all have a breaking point”

Since then, however, it has been revealed that Topuria is unlikely to require surgery for his injuries, meaning he may be able to get back in the cage quicker than some had anticipated.

In a recent interview, Anthony Smith weighed in on what kind of timeline we should be looking at for Topuria.

Smith’s view on Topuria’s future

“I’d like to see him at the end of the year, though you don’t want to sit on that too long,” Smith said on The Ariel Helwani Show. “You don’t want to because it’ll f— with you, it’ll mess with how you feel about yourself, you know.

“Especially when you’re at the level of superstar that he is, and the attention that he has, and he’s going to be eating that one for a while, especially with the s— that he says… So, the quicker you can get back and be healthy and 100%, and try to get that monkey off your back, the better.”

Quotes via Bloody Elbow

The main priority here is the health of the former champion, and that goes for his mental state as well as his physical, given that he put a lot into this training camp and performance.

Do you agree with Anthony Smith? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, BJPENN Nation!