Ilia Topuria vacating the featherweight title in hopes of a lightweight title fight against Islam Makhachev might have seemed like a bold move at the time. However, in the weeks since the public announcement, the Spaniard seems to be regretting the call. And he’s blaming Dana White and the UFC.
Despite boasting knockout wins against Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway in a calendar year, Topuria’s championship journey at 145 lbs only ever saw one title defense.
This led to arguments about his legacy at the division, especially now that Islam’s team had reportedly refused to fight yet another featherweight champion. Topuria could have saved face with a #1 contender fight against Charles Oliveira, but the Brazilian seems more interested in Islam and has turned the Spaniard down as well.
Now, in light of these recent developments, Topuria has claimed he still has hopes of getting a title fight soon. In an interview, he said, “The UFC promised me I’d fight for the belt. That’s why I vacated it. And they’ve always kept their promise.”
Ilia Topuria tras WOW 17:
“La UFC me ha prometido que voy a pelear por el cinturón. Por eso lo dejé vacante. Y siempre han cumplido conmigo”.@marca pic.twitter.com/jOOXrjB5Z7
— Irati Prat (@IratiPratSC) March 29, 2025
While White hasn’t confirmed or denied these discussions, if it is true, the move seems to have completely backfired. Topuria, in the meantime, has been throwing everything at the wall and hoping something sticks.
In a bizarre statement earlier this week, he claimed that both Islam and Oliveira were scared to fight him, much to former champion and ESPN analyst Daniel Cormier’s delight.
Nobody’s scared, asserts DC
“Islam is not afraid of him. And I’ll be honest with you, Neither is Justin Gaethje. Neither is Charles Oliveira. Neither is Dustin Poirier or Michael Chandler. Those guys aren’t afraid of each other”, Cormier claimed, having watched most of these names for their entire careers.
Daniel Cormier on Ilia Topuria saying LW’s are scared of him
“Islam is not afraid of him. And I’ll be honest with you, Neither is Justin Gaethje. Neither is Charles Oliveira. Neither is Dustin Poirier or Michael Chandler. Those guys aren’t afraid of each other.”
(via Daniel… pic.twitter.com/0Bs4zKUKbk
— Dovy (@DovySimuMMA) March 28, 2025
Between Gaethje, Oliveira, Poirier, and Makhachev, the former lightweight champions have had 115 professional fights and have won a lot more than they have lost. So a fight, either against each other or against Topuria, is just another day at the job.
Besides, the champion, Makhachev, had earlier stated that while he doesn’t want to fight Topuria because it’s not a great look for his legacy, he would do it on a couple of months’ notice should the UFC bear down on him.
As they say in the Dagestani camp, “If King Kong can make 155…“
