Ilia Topuria Calls Out Islam Makhachev, Sends Chilling Warning to Khabib Nurmagomedov
Despite being on hiatus, UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria has not hesitated to call out newly minted UFC welterweight kingpin Islam Makhachev again. Topuria has stepped away from fighting for personal reasons and will be back after the first quarter of 2026. In the meantime, Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett will fight at UFC 324 for the interim lightweight championship, and the winner will fight ‘El Matador’ to unify the titles when he returns.
Topuria recently appeared in an interview with Eldoberdan MMA and fired shots at Makhachev. The Georgian-Spaniard alleged that the P4P king has not signed the deal to fight him. According to the UFC lightweight champion, Makhachev has never locked horns with an opponent like him, and he will put the 34-year-old to sleep. Topuria said: “Everyone knows it’s a fight everyone wants to see, and for some reason he hasn’t accepted it, and then he talks too much. It’s very easy to talk from thousands of kilometers away and criticize me, but then, when you have me in that octagon, you start to realize that I’m not Jack Della Maddalena, that I’m not Dan Hooker, that I’m not all those guys that you have faced. I’m something very different, and when I put my right hand on you, you’ll see that you’re going to have a very, very long sleep.”
Topuria vs. Makhachev was a done deal until Belal Muhammad lost his welterweight title to Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315, after which the Russian fighter moved up to pursue two-division glory and was successful. Similarly, after Islam Makhachev vacated his lightweight throne, Ilia Topuria knocked out Charles Oliveira to capture the vacant championship at UFC 317.
Topuria’s Warning to Khabib Nurmagomedov
Ilia Topuria has sent a chilling warning to Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev. Topuria desires to submit Makhachev in front of ‘The Eagle’ and says he will step on the latter’s head too. During the same interview, ‘El Matador’ quipped: “I consider my strong point to be the ground, but lately I’ve accepted that it is not what the public wants to see, although with Islam, perhaps it is something that the public wants to see. To dominate him standing up, to give him three or four punches in the spot where I have to hit him, and then to submit him in front of Khabib and if he wants to pass, I’ll gladly step on his head too.”
Now, Topuria wants to fight Makhachev at welterweight and hopes to dethrone the latter and attain a third UFC gold. He has also pitched the idea of a pound-for-pound belt for which the two can fight at catchweight, as the Russian fighter has no intention of moving down to 155 pounds until the promotion comes up with a hard-to-decline offer.
UFC Fans React to Topuria’s Comments
Topuria’s comments have sparked a lot of reaction from UFC fans, with many taking to social media to express their opinions on the potential fight between Topuria and Makhachev. While some fans believe that Topuria has what it takes to defeat Makhachev, others think that the Russian fighter’s skills and experience will be too much for the Georgian-Spaniard to handle.
Regardless of the outcome, one thing is certain – a fight between Ilia Topuria and Islam Makhachev would be an exciting and highly anticipated matchup that would generate a lot of interest and buzz in the UFC community. With Topuria’s confidence and skills, and Makhachev’s experience and abilities, this fight has the potential to be one of the most memorable and thrilling bouts in recent UFC history.
