Ilia Topuria has big fights ahead of him when he returns to action and he hopes a fight with Islam Makhachev is still in the cards.
The UFC lightweight champion told eldoberdanMMA that a bout with Makhachev, currently champion at 170 pounds, is a possibility of Makhachev is interested, and the matchup would pair the arguably the two best pound-for-pound fighters in the world against one another. Topuria has always liked how he matches up with Makhachev, and if Makhachev’s coach and close friend Khabib Nurmagomedov decides to get involved, Topuria is ready to deal with him as well.
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“And that wrestling [Makhachev] thinks he has… we’ll see how well it works on me,” Topuria said (Spanish translation via Championship Rounds). “Although with Islam, maybe that’s something the fans want to see. To dominate him on the feet, land three or four clean shots where I need to, and then submit him in his corner in front of Khabib.
“They’re so cocky and arrogant, I would really love to submit him in front of [Nurmagomedov], and if Khabib wants to step in afterward, I’ll gladly step on his head, too.”
Earler this year, when the undefeated Topuria announced his plans to vacate his featherweight championship and move up to 155 pounds, a fight with Makhachev loomed, but then Makhachev made his own move to welterweight where he later defeated Jack Della Maddalena to become a two-division champion. Prior to that, Topuria completed his own two-division quest, knocking out Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 to claim the vacant lightweight belt.
Once again a division apart, Topuria vs. Makhachev appears to becoming less likely as time goes on, but Topuria isn’t letting go of it completely.
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“I’ve always wanted that fight,” Topuria said. “I’ve always been ready for it. After I defend my title at 155, we’ll see.”
Topuria is currently on a hiatus from competition as he deals with personal matters, recently stating he is being extorted over “false allegations of domestic abuse.” Initially, Topuria said he would miss the first quarter of 2026, but an exact return date remains unclear. When he defends his belt next, he is expected to face the winner of an interim lightweight title fight between Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett, which headlines UFC 324 on Jan. 24.
If he stays unbeaten, Topuria claims the ball is, and always has been, in Makhachev’s court.
“Everyone knows it’s a fight that everyone wants to see,” Topuria said. “And for some reason, he hasn’t accepted it. Then he talks too much. It’s very easy to talk from thousands of kilometers away, to judge and criticize me. But when you’re in the octagon with me, you’ll start to realize that I’m not Jack Della Maddalena, that I’m not Dan Hooker, I’m not all those packages you’ve fought before. I’m something very different.
“And when I land my right hand on you, you’re going to have a very, very long sleep.”
