Ilia Topuria’s decision to vacate his featherweight title and walk away for lightweight ambitions has evoked a variety of reactions. While some fighters welcomed the move, others —like rising contender Jose Delgado —are furious that they lost the opportunity to face him.
Hailing from Yuma, Arizona, and fighting out of Phoenix, the 5’11” Delgado boasts an impressive professional record of 9 wins and just 1 loss. Of those 9 wins, 5 have come by knockout and 4 by submission, a testament to his versatile skills.
For Delgado, a fight with the champion would have been a career-defining moment. Firstly, it would have been a title shot. Secondly, Topuria commands good pay-per-view numbers, which would have ultimately reflected in his opponent’s purse as well. Unfortunately, fate, the UFC, and Topuria, all had different plans for the featherweight championship.
While speaking to Inside Fighting, Delgado first pointed out that the fight for the vacant title between Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes was phenomenal and called both contenders ‘studs’. But Topuria leaving the 145 lbs division upset him more than anything else. “I am furious that Ilia left the division”, he said.
“I have one fight in the UFC who the f*** am I to talk about Ilia. But I genuinely look at that guy, and to me he’s the guy to beat… I want his head bad, to me he is the most complete fighter I have ever seen.”, Delgado added, mourning the missed opportunity.
Delgado has a long way to go in the UFC. Topuria was always a long shot anyway. However, with time, if Delgado keeps winning, then moving up to 155 lbs and challenging the Spaniard wouldn’t be too much of a stretch for a man of his talents.
In the meantime, questions remain about whether Topuria was asked to vacate the title or if he did it of his own volition. For quite some time, the ambitions of becoming a double champ have clouded many a division’s future.
While nobody has realistically fought for the honor for a few years now, it does make for an exhausting few phone calls for matchmakers. Fighters like Sean O’Malley, while they were champion, had openly stated wanting to move up and fight for another title while the No.1 contender in the divisions lay waiting for months.
So, with Topuria’s 155 lbs ambitions made public months ago, the question was always going to be about whether the UFC would step in or allow the Spaniard to stall the 145 division.
And just a couple of days ago, Lopes addressed the question and claimed that the UFC had now made it clear that no champion would be allowed to stall the division, implying that the promotion had a hand to play in the Topuria situation.
Dana White addresses vacant 145 lbs title
However, the UFC bossman has now come out to assert that the promotion wasn’t holding anyone hostage.
According to White, the reigning champ voluntarily vacated his belt, feeling he had nothing left to prove at 145 pounds, and was ready to move up.
“He said, ‘I’ve done everything I can do here, I’m ready to move up,’ and he vacated it,” White explained while adding he respected Topuria for not wanting to hold up anybody else’s opportunities.
Dana White is asked if Ilia Topuria vs Islam Makhachev is the fight to make next:
“There’s still other possibilities. There’s a lot of sh*t going on right now.” #UFC #MMApic.twitter.com/Q06AAQk1nn
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) February 23, 2025
Topuria’s exit set up a direction for the UFC’s lightweight division but as for his next move, a title shot at Islam Makhachev isn’t a done deal just yet.
“There are still other possibilities,” White teased.
Meanwhile, rumor mills suggest that the Spaniard didn’t just drop a title to fight for the top contender spot when he should be taking on the champion, Islam Makhachev, adding even more drama into the mix.
