Mak Meh On Topuria Match

Makhachev knows from experience what beating the best featherweights in the world does for his career: absolutely nothing.

Ilia Topuria and his team have talked a lot about moving up to lightweight and smashing 155 pound champion Islam Makhachev. Now Makhachev is firing back at the featherweight champ.

Topuria took the belt of Alexander Volkanovski and became the first man to knock out Max Holloway at UFC 308. His coach says he’ll be the first to submit Makhachev, and Ilia drew a lot of anger from Islam’s teammates after suggesting a street fight between the two would go the Georgian’s way.

In a new interview with Russian outlet MatchTV, Makhachev sounded more annoyed by Topuria than actually angry.

“He’s a champion, he has to talk,” he said. “We’ll 100% have some kind of conversation with him. He talks about me all the time. He probably wants to convey something, I don’t understand what exactly. Let’s go outside and talk.”

As for a properly sanctioned bout?

“We’ll fight if we have to,” Makhachev said. “In terms of my fighting career, I’m not interested in fighting Topuria at all. He’s in a different weight class. I’ll beat him, and what will that do for me? I won’t win another belt. Everyone will once again say that I beat a featherweight. That’s it. But if people really want to see him lose, then we can do it.”

That’s something Islam has already dealt with: he has spent the majority of his lightweight title reign fighting Volkanovski, which won’t do much for him on paper in the long run. Even UFC CEO Dana White has shot down Islam’s P4P status because he fought down and not up. My brother, YOU booked him that way!

“I have other goals. I want to win a second belt,” he said. “If you want to remain in history, then you have to do something memorable.”

While a title shot at 170 pounds is what Makhachev is working towards, he’ll first have to rematch Arman Tsarukyan sometime in early 2025. When exactly has become something of a mystery, but the Dagestani fighter is deep in training camp up at Kislovodsk National Park, which sits at 2600ft. elevation.

“I am probably approaching this fight in my best shape,” he said. “I started preparing three months in advance. I think that is the maximum to approach in 100% shape. Before, the previous fight with Poirier, I had two months. I was not in shape, I was on the road. When I found out about the fight, I was in Saudi Arabia, it was Ramadan. In general, I had other plans. I had to re-adjust, change.”