Ilia Topuria has emerged as the new champion of the featherweight division after defeating long-reigning king Alexander Volkanovski. In doing so, ‘El Matador’ proved his might which was considered just a show of over-confidence by many. But is it enough to beat Khabib Nurmagomedov?

It also stands to reason that while Topuria has ascertained himself to be a great striker and grappler, his changing his social media bio to indicate his win before it happened took people by surprise. Now, he’s done it all and wants to challenge none other than the undefeated Dagestani. But can he win?

Can Ilia Topuria overturn the Khabib Nurmagomedov legacy?

It makes sense for Ilia Topuria to want to beat Khabib Nurmagomedov.  Why? Their stats are not way off if the two are compared. Being undefeated is a start with Topuria being a little new to the promotion. ‘El Matador stands at 15-0 while Nurmagomedov retired with a 29-0 perfect record. Topuria has won 8 out of his 15 fights via submission while ‘The Eagle’ has secured 11 submissions in his undefeated history. While the Dagestani is known for his wrestling skills, Topuria is brilliant at Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. And both of them have an uninterrupted winning streak in their professional MMA records. This could make up Topuria’s first reason to defeat Nurmagomedov. Having an opponent much like himself.

“My dream rival. . . I would be happy to enter the Octagon with Khabib Nurmagomedov.” Said Topuria in a conversation. “He has an undefeated record of 29-0 and he has an attractive record for me, then also history. He is a worthy and honorable champion for me. 100% (defeat him.)”

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Another reason would perhaps be Nurmagomedov’s history of victories. He has defeated the likes of Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, and Conor McGregor. In fact, perhaps Topuria has some sort of legacy-making mindset himself since he called out McGregor for a fight in Spain. Clearly, he wants to fight UFC greats to prove himself worthy of being a mainstay in the promotion.

‘El Matador’ also spoke about honor and worth of ‘The Eagle’. Everyone knows Nurmagomedov to be a fighter with high values. Perhaps recreating an honorable champion within himself is the goal Topuria has been chasing since winning the featherweight belt. In doing so, defeating Nurmagomedov would only help legitimize his legacy as a champion. This is the third big reason Topuria would want to go after Nurmagomedov. It’s because defeating a giant would establish him as a new great. But is it even possible?

Will Nurmagomedov ever return?

Khabib Nurmagomedov retired from the sport in 2020 after defeating Justin Gaethje via a triangle choke. His record was still flawless and though he appeared in Islam Makhachev‘s corner later, ‘The Eagle’ completely retired from the cage side in the years to come.

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Now, he spends most of his time training future champions of the world with his brilliant wrestling skills. Will he ever return? Daniel Cormier, a close friend of Nurmagomedov’s, once revealed that the Dagestani was offered $40 million to come back to the UFC.

Nurmagomedov would later confirm so talking about how it’s not easy to say no to so much money. But for him, that was never important. He left the sport to support his family after his father’s passing and to this day, he remains adamant on his decision. Will he return? Most likely, not.

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