Earlier this week, Ilia Topuria’s head coach Jorge Climent revealed that the featherweight champion is done with 145lbs and will make his official move up to lightweight.
The Spaniard’s comments came as a shock considering Ilia Topuria was likely set to defend his title against Alexander Volkanovski, after knocking out Max Holloway this past October.
Following his incredible performance against ‘Blessed’, he and Volkanovski faced off again, setting up for a huge featherweight title fight rematch.
Ilia Topuria addresses his coach’s comments on whether he will vacate the title
‘El Matador’ has always made it clear that he eventually wants to move up to the lightweight division to fight Islam Makhachev in what would be one of the biggest fights in UFC history.
With that, a rivalry between the two seems to be brewing, with Makhachev recently commenting on the likelihood of a fight with the Spaniard.
Climent commented that when Topuria makes his move up to lightweight official, he will likely vacate the featherweight title, which surprised fans.
However, addressing his coach’s comments, Topuria has shed some light on his plans, stating that he will not vacate the 145lb strap.
“I will not leave the title vacant. The decision to move up to the next (weight) category is entirely mine,” the champion began to explain.
“I haven’t had any conversations with the UFC yet, so everything is still to be decided. Stop celebrating because I’m not going anywhere. I have conquered my division and will do the same in the next one,” he continued.
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Although the 27-year-old didn’t exactly put the rumors to bed that he will move up to lightweight for his next fight, he is adamant that regardless of his next move, he will not be vacating the featherweight title, and will be going for double champ status if he does move up.
Who can we expect to see Topuria fight next and when?
Confusing the matter further, Topuria recently told Spanish radio station, El Partidazo de COPE, that he would like to fight against Charles Oliveira next, considering Makhachev is already booked to fight Arman Tsarukyan in January.
As he mentioned, he and the UFC have yet to begin talks regarding his next fight, however, following the news of him considering a move to lightweight, the promotion will surely be looking to begin conversations soon.
The original plan was seemingly for ‘El Matador’ to defend his title against ‘The Great’ Volkanovski midway through 2025, possibly in Spain.
Despite having outlined his plans to move up, he will likely go ahead with another 145lb title defense next, having stated he is ‘not going anywhere’.
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