Well, Ilia Topuria has finally made his way to conquer the shark-infested waters at lightweight. And there is just one question on everyone’s mind! who will he fight next? Most would like to see him slug it out against the division kingpin Islam Makhachev for the gold. But since the Dagestani and his team, including Khabib Nurmagomedov, have said repeatedly that Topuria doesn’t deserve a title shot right away and needs to prove himself against another top-ranked guy first. And who better to do that against than #1 ranked Arman Tsarukyan?

However, it seems ‘El Matador’ is in no mood to do that, and wants to fight for the 155-pound crown straightaway. “Ilia wants a championship fight. He will not fight for the status of a contender with Tsarukyan or anyone else,” a source close to ‘El Matador’ has told Russian news agency TASS.

To be fair, Makhachev and his team’s opposition to giving Topuria a title shot right away isn’t set in stone. Since ‘El Matador’ has moved up, there have been some contradictory statements from the Dagestani and his team on this subject. His coach, Javier Mendez, for example, feels that the Dagestani would accept the fight if offered by the UFC.

“All Islam needs is 2 months to prepare for anybody. He’s not gonna care who he fights. You know, you make 155, you know, we all have the same attitude. We fight. You pay us, this [Topuria] is who you’re offering. He’s not gonna say no. If that’s who they offer, that’s who is being worked out, is on the table for Islam, that’s what Islam is going to do,” the AKA gym head coach told ‘Submission Radio’ in an interview last week. Well, that settles it, right? Mendez has said Makhachev will fight Topuria next and that is that. Well, not quite.

Islam Makhachev’s thoughts on an Ilia Topuria fight

The last time Islam Makahchev spoke about giving Ilia Topuria a title shot, he was clear- ‘El Matador’ needs to earn it. “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 told Russian sports outlet ‘Match TV’ in a recent interview.

Whether Makhachev’s views on a Topuria fight have now changed remains unknown. Of course, coach Mendez is sure that the lightweight champ would accept the Topuria fight, if offered by the UFC. But Makhachev himself doesn’t seem too enthusiastic. Last week, the Dagestani revealed that he had been offered a couple of options for his next fight that he is mulling.

“There is an option in my weight class, and there is an offer from the UFC,” the Makhachkala native said, implying there was an offer for a fight at a different weight class. Although there is still a lot of ambiguity if Makhachev doesn’t want to fight Topuria right away, the Spanish-Georgian superstar will have no choice but to fight another top-ranked guy, perhaps Tsarukyan, to secure it. Whether or not he wants to is besides the point. Makhachev holds the title, and what he says goes. What do you think about Ilia Topuria wanting a lightweight title shot right away?

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