Should Ilia Topuria Vacate Belt & Chase After History Instead?
Ilia Topuria has a name in mind for who he would like to dance with next. However, whether the UFC featherweight champion will get his wish is still to be determined. Topuria turned heads at UFC 308 by becoming the first fighter to knock out former champion Max Holloway.
MMAfighting latest news shows that Topuria has no problem slaying dragons. During Topuria’s last two fights, he has collected knockout wins that should have his Hall of Fame candidacy all sewn up. In addition to knocking out Holloway, Topuria stopped long-time champion Alexander Volkanovski in the second round.
During a recent interview, Topuria floated Charles Oliveira as his next opponent. Fighting Oliveira, a former lightweight champion, would require Topuria to go up in weight class. There have been many champions in the UFC who decided to challenge themselves to become double champions.
Is that the path Topuria will follow, too? Or would it better serve the UFC to see Topuria dominate the featherweight division?
Who Would be the Challenger at Featherweight?
If Topuria were going to stay at featherweight, MMA breaking news shows that the top-two ranked contenders in the division, Alexander Volkanovski and Holloway, have already been knocked out by Topuria. The No. 3-ranked fighter, Diego Lopes, is an interesting contender.
Lopes is an explosive fighter who likes to come out in the first round and try to put his opponents away with his explosive striking. However, fighting Topuria now may be too much too soon for Lopes. Lopes wasn’t necessarily highly thought of when he debuted with a loss to Movsar Evloev in May 2023.
Lopes impressed in a close decision loss. Since then, Lopes has collected five straight wins. Lopes’ last win was his most impressive, a decision win over former title challenger Brian Ortega at UFC 306. But it’s hard to think of Lopes as a good match to fight Topuria.
Lopes has been knocked out twice in his career. Volkanovski would like a rematch. But it’s hard to see Topuria being interested in that bout. Volkanovski wasn’t able to muster much of a defense during their first bout.
However, Volkanovski may have overscheduled himself before fighting Topuria the first time. He had two intense fights with Makhachev before he fought Volkanovski. Maybe some time off before the fight would help Volkanovski, but there’s also a chance he would get bullied again.
Topuria Said He’s Ready for Charles Oliveira
When Topuria mentioned moving up to lightweight, he said he would like to fight former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira. Current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev is scheduled to fight Arman Tsarukyan for the belt at UFC 311 in January.
Topuria was hoping to try and get a fight with Oliveira in January and February to set up a title bout later in 2025. Oliveira may not be interested in taking the risk though. He is scheduled to sit cageside for the Makhachev fight and would like another shot at the man who took his belt off of him.
Oliveira recently beat Michael Chandler in a five-round fight to establish himself as the top contender. Oliveira was set for a rematch with Makhachev earlier this year, but he had to pull out, and Dustin Poirier stepped in in his place.
Topuria Has Potential to Be All-Time Great
It shouldn’t be surprising that Topuria has grand ambition. He’s only 27 years old and has just scratched the surface of his potential. Topuria is 16-0 and has already defended the featherweight belt once.
However, Topuria is on the record saying that he wants his MMA career to be short. But MMA news sites are filled with stories of guys who say they are walking away early. It will be interesting to see which direction Topuria decides to take his career in.
What is Topuria’s Best Win?
In the UFC, Topuria has produced a high amount of dominant performances. But the one that may linger as the most impressive one is his fight with Josh Emmett in June 2023. Topuria dominated the fight.
He landed more power shots, and Emmett’s face looked like a horror show after the fight. But Emmett never quit. He continued to come forward under the immense power of Topuria.
Topuria’s power has shown itself to be world-class. He is the only fighter to ever knock out Holloway. When Topuria fought Volkanovski, it only took a few shots to put away a long-time champion. But Emmett didn’t buckle.
Topuria’s cardio had been questioned before the fight. But Topuria was able to last all five rounds and pick up the victory.
Where Would the Featherweight Division Go?
Topuria beating Volkanovski was a fresh start for the division, which had long been under the thumb of the Australian. There wouldn’t really be an appetite for a battle between Volkanovski and Holloway again. Those two had already fought three times.
Volkanovski already has three wins over Holloway, and having the two men fight again would seem like a waste of time. Topuria is so talented the UFC will likely grant his wish to move up.
But it would be a shame not to be able to see how many title defenses Topuria could make at the weight class. For a man who claims he doesn’t want to fight that long, he has a lot of things to accomplish before his time runs out.
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By Dean McHugh.
