After much anticipation, UFC 317 has its main event locked in.
UFC 317
On Tuesday, UFC CEO Dana White revealed that Ilia Topuria will square off against Charles Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title in the main event of UFC 317 on June 28 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, capping off the promotion’s annual International Fight Week.
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The UFC lightweight throne is now vacant as reigning champion Islam Makhachev sets his sights on welterweight gold, targeting a high-profile clash with newly crowned titleholder Jack Della Maddalena, with their potential showdown expected to take place later this year.
Topuria vacated his featherweight title ahead of UFC 314 to make a permanent move up to lightweight, with the goal of becoming a two-division champion. “El Matador” last graced the Octagon at UFC 308 in October, where he delivered a stunning knockout victory over Max Holloway, further extending his undefeated promotional record to 8-0.
Meanwhile, Oliveira will be pursuing the undisputed 155-pound title for the third time, riding high on a dominant unanimous decision victory over Michael Chandler in their November rematch at UFC 309. “Do Bronx” claimed the lightweight crown at UFC 262 with a dominant win over Chandler. The Brazilian then successfully defended his title against Dustin Poirier at UFC 269.
However, after missing weight for his second defense, the Brazilian was stripped of the belt, only to bounce back with a submission victory over Justin Gaethje at UFC 274. Oliveira had another shot at the vacant title at UFC 280, but was soundly outclassed by Makhachev.
