Ilia Topuria may have officially closed the chapter on competing at featherweight.
Known as “El Matador,” Topuria had a dominant run at 145 pounds, achieving an undefeated record. His ascent culminated in a spectacular knockout win over Alexander Volkanovski in February 2024 to claim the UFC title. He later added to his legacy by becoming the first fighter to finish Max Holloway via strikes.
After securing multiple accolades at featherweight before turning 28, Topuria is now pursuing a new challenge. He is set to compete for the vacant lightweight championship against Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 on June 28th. To secure this opportunity, he had to vacate his featherweight belt.
Topuria expressed no regrets about leaving the division, particularly given the extreme difficulty he faced making the 145-pound weight limit.
“When you’re cutting weight and you can’t eat or drink water, you don’t care about any material things,” Topuria told ESPN Deportes. “They can give you bags of money, they can give you all the cars you want, you don’t care at all. If they give you this little glass of water and say, ‘You can drink this and it won’t increase your weight,’ I’ll give you whatever it takes in that moment. I’m so low. I feel terrible. It’s like sitting naked in the middle of the street. I feel terrible. So I didn’t want to suffer anymore. I didn’t want to go through that.
“I’d already done it throughout my career. I’d already achieved my dream, which was to become a world champion. I had to close that chapter because I didn’t want to suffer anymore. Because honestly, it’s like living in the desert and I wanted to live on the beach.”
While alleviating the strain of a brutal weight cut was a significant factor, it wasn`t the sole motivation for Topuria`s move to 155 pounds.
Initially, Topuria`s decision to target the lightweight division was partly driven by the prospect of facing Islam Makhachev, the reigning champion and top-ranked pound-for-pound fighter at the time. Topuria clarified that while he is now focused on Oliveira, his initial pursuit of Makhachev was purely based on competitive ambition, not personal animosity.
“Why did I want to fight Islam?” Topuria said. “For one simple fact, and it’s the same with Volkanovski. If you beat someone and take the title from them at 145, it had to be Volk. It had to be Volk for me at that point because he had the most history in the division. He was the one who dominated everyone. He was the greatest.
“It’s the same for me with Islam. I wanted to fight him simply because he had dominated everyone. So, who’s beating everyone? Islam. Well, I want to fight him because then the prize is much bigger.”
However, certain comments from Makhachev and his team regarding Topuria`s readiness for a title shot rubbed him the wrong way. They had suggested he needed a win at lightweight first and also implied Makhachev might not vacate the title even if he moved up a division (a fight against Jack Della Maddalena was discussed before plans changed).
Despite the back-and-forth, Topuria is now positioned for the lightweight title shot, an opportunity he feels was inevitable regardless of others` opinions.
“They tried to make it seem important,” Topuria said of Makhachev and his team. “The attitude they have is like they invented the sport, you know? It’s, like, guys, sit back, enjoy the sun wherever you are, and do what you’re told to do. When they said that, I was like, ‘What are they making up?’ It was only two days before everything would eventually come out. What are they talking about? But everyone will realize the truth and look at what happened.
‘I’m not going to vacate the title even if I move up to 170.’ ‘No, Ilia has to fight someone to earn a title shot,’ Now, look. He’s moved up, he vacated the title, and I’m fighting directly for the belt.”
