Ilia Topuria is set to make his lightweight debut at UFC 317 in June this year. And although the UFC has not announced his opponent yet, the former featherweight champ has already put on the muscle and is even eliciting responses from the likes of Conor McGregor.
‘El Matador’ shared a video of himself doing some cardio training, during which he looked considerably bigger than his 145 lbs frame. Not being able to cut weight to make 145 lbs was one of the main reasons for the Spaniard’s move to lightweight, and it sure looks like he’s enjoying the glow up.
As of right now, former lightweight Charles Oliveira will likely be meeting him in the octagon in June. Topuria has long wanted to compete for the 155 lbs title. However, since champion Islam Makhachev has refused to relinquish the title despite a welterweight move, it appears an interim championship is what Topuria will be looking forward to.
However, in the meantime, the Spaniard has caught the eye of former UFC champion Conor McGregor, who is happy to make online threats.
The Irishman commented on a post about Topuria’s weight gain, saying, “A nice kick in the head.”
— THE UFCGUY (@the_ufcguy) May 13, 2025
However, in light of McGregor’s recent comments about being happy with what he’s already achieved in the octagon and a desire to run for Irish Presidency, it’s unlikely that Topuria is in any imminent danger.
And even if by some miracle, McGregor manages to make a comeback to the promotion, a fight at 155 lbs seems beyond the realm of possibility at this point. Since his last fight against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264 in 2021, the Irishman has put on a considerable amount of weight.
Besides, ‘El Matador‘ himself does not think there’s any way McGregor can beat him.
Topuria dismisses McGregor
Following his successful title defenses at featherweight that involved him taking out both Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski before him, Ilia Topuria found his way to the Joe Rogan Experience.
During the podcast episode, the pair began talking about McGregor and how he went from double champ to not fighting in over 4 years. Topuria was highly critical of McGregor’s lifestyle and called him stupid.
“His toe is fu*ked, his chin is fu*ked, his body is fu*ked. With that much parties and drugs and all that, you’re going to have to pay that price at some point. You’re paying the price with your health, which is the dumbest thing you can do,” ‘El Matador’ said with disdain.
Ilia Topuria Gives His Candid Opinion on Conor McGregor’s Apparent Health Condition:
“His toe is fed, his chin is fed, his body is f*ed. With that many parties and drugs, you’re going to have to pay the price at some point. You’re paying the price with your health, which is the… pic.twitter.com/XobuEEcjxd
— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) April 16, 2025
And when Rogan talked about just how tough it will be for McGregor to get back to fighting shape, Topuria shut the idea down with one line, “If you put him against me, he needs to die and be born again.”
