Ilia Topuria is following in the footsteps of UFC legends while carving his own path at the same time. The 28-year-old made his UFC debut in October 2020 and went on an unbeaten eight-fight run. Topuria won the UFC Featherweight Championship against Alexander Volkanovski in February 2024 at UFC 298 and cemented his legacy as one of the best in his weight class.
La Leyenda then defended his title against Max Holloway at UFC 308 in October last year. Since then, he was on the lookout for his next credible opponent.
After realizing that there isn’t much left for him to do in the FW division, Topuria decided to move up a class. He ended up vacating his title and announced that he will now compete in the Lightweight division. This announcement took the UFC world by storm as it’s rare to see someone vacate the throne for new challenges.
Topuria showed that he is striving for greatness and will settle for nothing else. Unfortunately, this decision also meant that Volk will never get to seek his revenge against the 28-year-old. During his recent appearance on First Take, he said he’s comfortable knowing that the Topuria rematch might never happen.
“A lot of people are disappointed it’s not Ilia. The Ilia rematch. I’m like, look, I’ve obviously wanted that rematch with Ilia just to remind everyone and get that win back, but at least I still get to fight the new generation of fighters…I’m fighting a young, hungry guy who is on a bit of a tear. So, I’ve still got the next best thing,” Volk said.
What’s next for Alexander Volkanovski and Ilia Topuria?
With Topuria moving up a division, it’s almost guaranteed that a rematch between them will not happen. It’s highly unlikely that 36-year-old Volk will go up a division to fight Topuria to get his win back. However, despite the possibility of their rematch likely being zero, there’s a lot to look forward to with both fighters.
Volk will now fight Diego Lopes at UFC 314 this upcoming weekend. Lopes is six years younger than him and is one of the best fighters in the promotion. Their fight will be the main event for UFC 314, with Michael Chandler vs Paddy Pimblett being the co-main event.
Topuria, on the other hand, is still looking for an opponent. There was a rumor that spread around after UFC Vegas 105 that Topuria would fight Charles Oliveira, but it was later quashed as it was fake. In the meantime, Topuria is getting used to the new weight class and is eyeing his next opponent. Whenever he fights next, it’s going to be the beginning of a new journey which will hopefully end with the LW belt around his waist.
Prateek is a seasoned content writer with over 2500 published articles and two+ years of experience. His passion for UFC was ignited during Conor McGregor’s meteoric rise, and closely following McGregor’s journey inspired him to bring a sharp, fan-driven perspective to his UFC coverage, blending detailed analysis with compelling storytelling.
