It would seem that former UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria has gotten his wish for an immediate shot at adding lightweight gold to his trophy collection.
Topuria has set his sights on achieving two-division glory after choosing to vacate the 145-pound title this year following just one defense. “La Leyenda” went 2-0 in 2024, dethroning Alexander Volkanovski before becoming the first to knock out Max Holloway.
Due to an apparent struggle to make the weight limit, the Spaniard will move forward as a 155-pounder. And given his success below, Topuria has been expecting a showdown with Islam Makhachev straight away.
Whether that's the matchup or not remains to be seen, but a report from Spanish journalist Álvaro Colmenero does place Topuria as one half of the next lightweight title fight.
According to Colmenero, the ex-featherweight kingpin will compete either against Makhachev or for a vacant belt at UFC 317 during International Fight Week this June.
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Previous speculation has suggested that Makhachev is awaiting the result of the UFC 315 headliner between his frequent training partner Belal Muhammad and Jack Della Maddalena before deciding on a possible move up to welterweight.
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