To be the best, you have to beat the best—especially in combat sports, where questions about who’s superior can often be settled in a matter of twenty-five minutes. That’s exactly why Ilia Topuria, fresh off his move from featherweight, is eager to face lightweight champion Islam Makhachev—who also holds the title of pound-for-pound king in the sport. However, Makhachev is hesitant. Known for his belief in merit, the Dagestani champion has made it clear that Topuria must “prove himself” worthy of a title shot, likely by defeating at least one top-ranked 155-pound contender.
But Kamaru Usman disagrees, arguing that this might be a mistake. The man whom Dana White labeled as his 170lbs GOAT ahead of the legendary Georges-St Pierre believes Makhachev should take on Topuria next, not because he necessarily deserves the shot, but because it would be a move that benefits Makhachev’s career in the long run. According to ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’, the fight is a challenge the 155lbs gold standard needs to take—both for the division and his own legacy.
“Ilia Topuria, I believe, is definitely next. Put him up there because Islam needs a new face and I honestly believe this is the biggest fight that you can make for Islam. And I think Islam deserves that. Islam has worked, he’s put time in, you know. I believe he needs that big fight to put him there, and I think this is the fight to put him there, okay, to where he’s a standalone champion,” Usman told co-host Henry Cejudo on their ‘Pound 4 Pound’ podcast.
Indeed, the Makhachev-Topuria showdown is arguably the most exciting—and potentially the biggest—fight that could be made in the sport right now. From a pure quality-of-fight perspective, it might even surpass Jones-Aspinall, despite the latter likely pulling in bigger numbers as a heavyweight unification bout.
Topuria’s star has skyrocketed. After knocking out two of the greatest featherweights of all time, his popularity is fast approaching the level of Conor McGregor’s. A win over the former featherweight champ would not only solidify Makhachev’s dominance but could mark his own “Conor-Khabib moment”—a victory that elevates him into an entirely different stratosphere within the sport. But Makhachev remains unconvinced, with reasons that are compelling from his perspective—reasons that Topuria, naturally, disagrees with.
Ilia Topuria thinks Islam Makhachev is lying about the reason he doesn’t want to fight him
“I’m not going to give him a shot right away because he hasn’t done all the work he was supposed to in his weight class. There are still contenders he needs to beat, but he doesn’t want to cut weight anymore. Let him move up and earn his shot, and we’ll definitely fight,” Makhachev declared in an interview with Russian sports outlet ‘Match TV’.
This does seem like a fair ask at first glance. After all, moving weight classes is not a walk in the park. You will remember Israel Adesanya, for instance, moving up to light heavyweight for a double champ title opportunity against then 205-pound champ Jan Blachowicz in their UFC 259 clash in 2021. Even though ‘Izzy’ was utterly dominant at middleweight at the time, he proved to be easy prey for the bigger and stronger Pole.
So Makhachev’s demand that the Spanish-Georgian prove himself at lightweight before getting a title shot does seem fair. Not to Topuria, however, who sees a far more sinister reason behind the Dagestani’s reluctance to face him. Fear!
“He [Makhachev’s] afraid. Of course, he is afraid, of course. As usual, it is an easy fight until they put your name on the contract. We all know if it were that easy and if I’m ‘small’ as he says, he would already share the octagon with me. There’s a reason he doesn’t want to. I understand. So, it’s ok, go up,” Topuria told ‘Marca TV’ earlier this month.
What do you think about Kamaru Usman’s take on Islam Makhachev ‘needing’ the Ilia Topuria fight next?
The post “Islam Needs a New Face” – Dana White’s Welterweight GOAT Backs Ilia Topuria for Islam Makhachev Title Shot appeared first on EssentiallySports.
