In recent years, many fighters have sought to move up to a higher division in pursuit of greater achievements in their fighting careers. UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria has recently expressed a similar desire. To fulfill this goal, Topuria is eager to face the current UFC lightweight champion, Islam Makhachev, in the near future.
The rivalry between Team Khabib and Ilia Topuria has been generating a lot of attention lately. Amidst this, the featherweight champion recently held a live session on his Instagram account to address some issues. It appears that fans had questions about the ongoing feud. During the session, Topuria mentioned his desire to fight Makhachev after his upcoming bout against Max Holloway.
Of course (I think I can beat Islam)… (Islam) Makhachev real soon. Hope Makhachev will be the next after this fight…
Ilia Topuria via Instagram (@iliatopuria)
Ilia Topuria became the featherweight champion after defeating one of the most dominant champions, Alexander Volkanovski. Since then, he has seemed determined to create his legacy in the promotion. Topuria wants to follow in the footsteps of his once-idol, Conor McGregor, to achieve these goals. This is one of the reasons he is currently looking ahead to fight Islam Makhachev after the Holloway fight.
Ilia Topuria says he hopes to fight Islam Makhachev after Max Holloway 👀
“Of course [I think I can beat Islam]… Makhachev real soon. Hope Makhachev will be next after this fight.”
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 6, 2024
As for his beef with Islam Makhachev, Topuria has frequently criticized the lightweight champion. As such, Topuria even claimed that he could easily take on Makhachev in a street fight as well. This angered some of Makhachev’s teammates, with one of them warning Topuria to stop making constant jibes at the lightweight champ.
UFC welterweight champion warns Ilia Topuria
Islam Makhachev is prominent in the promotion, largely due to his outstanding UFC performances. Throughout his impressive UFC career, Makhachev has only been defeated once, back in 2015. It has been nearly a decade since that defeat. Furthermore, Makhachev’s most recent victory was against the formidable lightweight fighter Dustin Poirier, further elevating his status in the promotion.
Amid it all, Ilia Topuria has been consistently challenging Makhachev to a fight. When the newly crowned UFC welterweight champion caught wind of their feud, he warned Topuria sternly. As such, Belal Muhammad believes that the Dagestani champion can defeat the Spanish fighter decisively, no matter where or when they fight.
Be careful what you wish for… You don’t want to mess with Islam (Makhachev)… It’s different there, if you want a street fight, they’ll street fight you… He (Makhachev) sees you, you disrespected him. He’s gonna show you what disrespect means…
Belal Muhammad via Helen Yee’s official YouTube channel
Belal Muhammad warns Ilia Topuria about messing with Islam Makhachev 😳
“Be careful what you wish for… you dont want to mess with Islam and them. It’s different there.
You want a street fight, they’ll street fight you.”
🎥 @HelenYeeSports #UFC #MMA pic.twitter.com/w9NMdVpiEe
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 5, 2024
Several other members of Team Khabib have also warned the featherweight champ to stop his constant disses, similar to Belal Muhammad. It remains to be seen how this intriguing rivalry will further escalate. Additionally, it will be interesting to see a potential fight between Topuria and Makhachev in the near future.
