Ilia Topuria and Islam Makhachev They have been adding fuel to the fire for months and months about the possibility of the UFC holding a fight between both in the future, but at the moment the company is not making any moves. At first, ‘El Matador’ thought that it was the Dagestani fighter who was not interested in the fight, but recently he has stated that he believes that It’s the UFC itself the one who does not want to carry out the confrontation.
We must not forget that both were very close to seeing each other’s faces in the UFC White Housebut everything went wrong at the last minute and finally Topuria will unify the lightweight belts against Justin Gaethje. Theoretically, the reason was an injury to Islam’s hand, although Ilia has stated that he does not see the Dagestani with fear for this possible duel.
I don’t think it’s because of Islam that the fight isn’t happening.
“I don’t think it’s because of Islam. so the fight is not happening. I really believe that It is the UFC that does not want make it a reality,” he stated in an interview with the youtuber ‘Deepcut’, in what is a real challenge for the promoter to make a move and carry out the fight in the near future, before it is too late.
Photo montage by Islam Makhachev and Ilia Topuria.
The UFC and a dilemma between two superstars
While Ilia will fight next June 14rumors suggest that Makhachev will face Ian Garry in August in the UFC 331 to make his first defense of the welterweight belt. Therefore, if both win their respective fights, the company would be able to give the Hispanic-Georgian fighter the freedom to move up the category and try to become the first triple champion of the history of the UFC.
However, it must also be taken into account that Topuria and Makhachev are two of the biggest superstars of the promoter, so in their interests the ideal would be for both to continue winning. At the same time, opportunities like these happen once in a long time, and could lead to a fight that change the history of sport.
Both have recognized that they want to face each other, they are the number one and number two in the pound-for-pound rankings, and both are the two most recent double champions of the UFC. White and in bottle. The only thing necessary is for both of them to fulfill their next commitments, and wait to hear their statements to know your intentionswhich surely go in the direction that everyone thinks.
