Who’s Next for Ilia Topuria? Discussing Potential Opponents for the Former Champ
Ilia Topuria and confidence go hand in hand. The bold and assertive 28-year-old Spaniard has never doubted his abilities when it comes to MMA. And why should he? At UFC 298, Topuria claimed the undisputed featherweight championship when he knocked out former pound-for-pound king Alexander Volkanovski. Ilia followed up on this career-making performance, with another when he became the first fighter to ever knock out Max Holloway at UFC 308. Back-to-back knockouts over two featherweight greats had fans wondering who could be next for Ilia Topuria in the 145 division. The answer? Nobody.
UFC president Dana White recently announced the full UFC 314 card in Miami, Florida. The main event will be former Featherweight Champion, and the man Topuria defeated to claim the Featherweight throne, Alexander Volkanovski taking on number three ranked Diego Lopes. To the shock of fans around the world, this bout will be for the UFC Featherweight title. In a jaw-dropping move, Topuria vacated his championship after just one title defense and will move up to the lightweight division. This leaves Topuria with a few options for his first lightweight fight.
Islam Makhachev
Islam Makhachev is the current pound-for-pound UFC king. Coming off of a first-round submission victory against Renato Moicano at UFC 311, Makhachev has been unstoppable. In the current landscape of the lightweight division, there isn’t a clear-cut contender. Number one-ranked Arman Tsarukyan was scheduled to fight Makhachev at UFC 311, but after a back injury forced him to pull out of the fight, Dana White has stated Arman will have to earn his way back to a title shot. All things considered, the stars have seemed to align for this mega-fight between Makhachev and Topuria to happen.
Arman Tsarukyan
As mentioned earlier, even though Arman Tsarukyan is the number one ranked lightweight, his next fight will not be for the title. However, a win against Ilia Topuria would certainly guarantee a championship opportunity. The same goes for Topuria. If the UFC decides to have Topuria fight a contender first instead of going straight into a title fight, who better to have him face than the number-one ranked contender.
Dustin Poirier
Dustin Poirier needs a retirement fight. Poirier, a UFC legend, has made it clear that his next fight will be his last. Coming off of a submission loss to current Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 302, I would not be surprised to see Poirier’s last fight come against a striker. Dustin Poirier has always been a fan favorite for his boxing-heavy approach, and ability to always find himself in fight-of-the-year contenders. A fight against Ilia Topuria would almost certainly be fireworks, which is exactly what Poirier wants. Topuria would be as tough as it comes for Poirier. The power Topuria has is real, but Topuria fits the style that Poirier wants in his last fight
Ilia Topuria vacating his Featherweight Championship has changed the landscape of not one, but two divisions. The UFC has options when determining who is next for the former Featherweight Champion. Does Topuria skip the line and go straight for the pound-for-pound king? Does he find himself in a title eliminator fight with a number-one contender who has something to prove? Does Topuria find himself fighting an all-time great and future UFC Hall of Famer? While we may not know who Ilia Topuria will be fighting yet, we do know that there is nothing but excitement and anticipation around the possibilities.
