Ilia Topuria‘s rise in the UFC has been nothing short of spectacular, and he’s not about to slow down anytime soon. With his sights set on Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 for the vacant lightweight title, many expect the undefeated Spaniard to stay in the category for the foreseeable future. But, in typical ‘El Matador’ fashion, he’s already planning two steps ahead. And, surprisingly, those steps may lead directly to 170 lbs—and Belal Muhammad‘s door.

In an interview with Ariel Helwani, the Spanish-Georgian not only hinted at a welterweight move but practically declared war on the division’s ‘easier’ targets. Topuria’s verbal sights were set on Belal Muhammad, the former interim champion known for his grind rather than his knockout power.

“Yeah, for sure, that could happen,” he stated about moving to welterweight. “Listen, if you have a champion like Belal, or I don’t know, many, many names that I could bring right now, that’s an easy path. Like, you can go slap him and get that title, and that’s it.” It was some brutal honesty delivered with Topuria’s signature calm.

What truly stood out was how Topuria framed his thinking. Fighting, for him, is about instinct more than statistics. And to prove that, he dragged in his wife. “If I’m walking in the street with my wife and someone says something to her, I’m not going to ask him, ‘How much do you weigh?’ What is your reach? Height? I will stay there, and I’m going to take his head off,” he said.

“This is how I think. If you have that 10 extra pounds, congratulations, but that’s not going to help you.” That kind of cold-blooded certainty distinguishes ‘El Matador’ from the pack—and makes his move to 170 seem not only possible, but inevitable.

Of course, he still has business to take care of at lightweight. The fight with Oliveira is one of the year’s most anticipated main events, and it will be Ilia Topuria’s second chance to win a UFC title after vacating the featherweight title in December.

But if he steamrolls Oliveira as he did Volkanovski and Holloway, the welterweight division may need to brace itself. Ilia Topuria isn’t aiming to tiptoe around weight classes; he’s planning a takeover. But when will he make the move? Well, for that, he is waiting for Islam Makhachev to win his next bout.

Ilia Topuria has his eyes set on Islam Makhachev’s next move

Ilia Topuria may be days away from the greatest fight of his career, and while his immediate focus is on Charles Oliveira, his long-term ambition still includes Islam Makhachev, whom he had wanted to face at UFC 317. That ship may have sailed, but Topuria has not forgotten his mission.

If anything, Makhachev’s transition to welterweight made the idea much more appealing. “If Islam becomes the welterweight world champion, for sure I’m going to push for that shot also,” Topuria said. It’s not just rhetoric. ‘El Matador’ made it clear: whether Makhachev moves back down or moves up, he is prepared to face him in whatever division.

“If he wins the title, and I win the lightweight division, maybe I move up or he comes down… and we have the fight that everyone wants to see,” he added, setting the stage for a superfight. This is not a task motivated by some bitter rivalry; it is about pursuing greatness. Makhachev dominated the lightweight division, and defeating him means more than just adding to his collection of gold medals.

“To be honest, I wanted to face him because he was the guy who was dominating everyone in that weight division.” Still, Topuria made it clear that he is not accusing Makhachev of ducking him. “He has his own goals,” he said, refusing to confirm accusations of avoidance. But just because Makhachev took a different path does not imply their paths can’t cross again. It might just be a matter of time before they eventually meet.