Is Ilia Topuria’s Future a Lightweight?
Islam Makhachev’s coach Javier Mendez believes a lightweight victory is essential if Ilia Topuria wants a shot at the title, but “El Matador” has yet to make a decision.
Can Topuria Prove His Worth as a Lightweight?
Topuria currently holds the UFC Featherweight Championship. However, “El Matador” recently teased moving up to lightweight, although he has since clarified that no decision has been made at this time. The fighter’s ambitions of facing Makhachev are already prominent in the mind of Topuria, even though the sentiment is not mutual.
The Path to a Potential Superfight
While “El Matador” continues to work out his path in lightweight, Mendez believes that an impressive win against someone like Charles Oliveira would give him credibility as a legitimate lightweight.
“Charles is not an easy fight for anybody,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “I slightly favor Ilia because of his power and his boxing precision.” “Charles is great. He’s good with everything. He’s coming with the knees, he’s coming with this. So you can never count Charles out. He was a world champion for a reason. He’s a great competitor still, and him and Arman’s fight, he came really close a lot of times to submitting Arman, too. So you can never count him out. That guy is still is a world beater, and he could definitely be a title contender again real soon.”
“So let’s say he does fight Ilia. Then all of a sudden, Charles beats him. Then all of a sudden we have a rematch with Charles, which would be warranted at that point. So let’s see what happens. But him coming up in weight and wanting to stay at lightweight, it’s a good step in the right direction vs. coming up to weight then staying back down at featherweight. That doesn’t really do very much for Islam. So if (Topuria) fights another lightweight at lightweight, that means OK, now people will look at him like he’s a lightweight. He’s a true legit lightweight.”
The Coach’s Opinion
Mendez has admitted that as it stands, he has no interest in seeing Makhachev vs. Topuria. If “El Matador” decides to move up and he has an impressive showing against a top-ranked lightweight, his mind might change.
The Road to Welterweight
Makhachev is already focused on a welterweight title run. However, the path to a potential jump into that division is complicated by the presence of Belal Muhammad as the current champion. The coach’s relationship with Makhachev could make this a difficult challenge.
A Potential Match for the Ages
Topuria’s success in lightweight might open the door to a fight he has been pushing for – one that would have massive implications for both fighters.