Ilia Topuria still has one eye on the former lightweight champion after their paths did not cross.
With Islam Makhachev who leaves its title of 155 pounds, Topuria will now be confronted with Charles Oliveira for the belt in the main event of UFC 317.
While 'El Matador' is still taking on 'Do Bronx' a huge fight, the matchup that wanted to see the most fighting fans were Topuria vs Makhachev.
The former Feeder Wain champion still keeps an eye on the Pound-for-Pound King, especially when he achieves success when he goes to goodweight, but he also believes that in the future there is an even bigger fight for him with Topuria who has more than one rival.
Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Ilia Topuria says that a fight with Paddy Pimblett would be larger than Islam Makhachev -Matchup
Ilia Topuria vs Islam Makhachev would be a huge fight between two of the very best hunters in the sport, but the Russian is not the only rival with which 'El Matador' has a score.
Topuria has a long -term feud with one of the biggest stars of the UFC, Paddy Pimblett, with the two men who come in a heated confrontation years before they both achieved enormous success in the Octagon.
The former Feeder Wain champion has already said that if he wins the lightweight title, he will defend it against 'The Baddy' as Pimblett can still produce a victory.
Topuria recently stated in an interview with Kevin Iole that, in his opinion, this matchup would be even greater than he did with Makhachev.
The undefeated star said that even the home fans of Makhachevet did not give him because they don't bother to stay up and see his fights live.
“I think it will be even bigger, I against Paddy than I am against Islam because the person who does not give anyone – about him, that is Islam. Nobody gives off -. Even in Dagestan, when he fights, the people go to sleep and they look at his next fight in the morning … even at home, who gives off – about Islam? He doesn't even know how to pronounce two words.”
Ilia Topuria hits the team of Islam Makhachev … “They pretend to have invented the sport”
During his rise in the UFC, Ilia Topuria has made some division, but so far he has always supported them.
He emphasized this when he spoke to Kevin Iole when he called the team of Islam Makhachev because he was entitled and proven that it was wrong.
“They pretend to have invented the sport. I have already said this. They talk, they talk, they talk and at the end of the day they do what they get to hear. They said they would not leave the belt, they would go to the Weltergewet Division, that I would not let the title go directly, that I had to fight again to get the shot and what was there?”
If Topuria appears the victory over UFC 317, he will only have even larger fights for him as the lightweight champion.