Will Ilia Topuria vs. Islam Makhachev ever happen? This question has been on fans’ minds ever since ‘El Matador’ vacated his featherweight title to move up to the lightweight division. When UFC CEO Dana White was asked about the potential showdown at 155, he responded diplomatically: “There’s still other possibilities. A lot of s— going on right now.” Amidst the chaos, Merab Dvalishvili has now stepped forward to share his own anticipation for what could be one of the most intriguing matchups in the UFC.

Taking to his Instagram handle, the bantamweight champion uploaded a “He’s probably thinking about other women” meme, highlighting his eagerness to witness the clash between his friend, Ilia Topuria, and the teammate of his former foe, Islam Makhachev. ‘Machine’ captioned the post with “My Life .. LOL.” 

Well, despite the anticipation, the UFC might not make the fight so soon because they have something special for the Dagestani, “I can’t announce it yet, but there is an offer that I need to sit down with my team and think about because there are options,” said Islam Makhachev. We must note that the UFC lightweight champion has been looking to score the second belt but Dana White is skeptical about it. Nevertheless, it looks like the UFC will be fulfilling Makhachev’s demands.

Since Ilia Topuria has relinquished his featherweight title, he doesn’t intrigue Islam Makhachev as much as Belal Muhammad, who is set to defend his title against Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315. However, according to MMA analyst, Luke Thomas, Islam Makhachev might have to face Ilia Topuria before prepping up for the welterweight division, “Either way, Islam just doesn’t have great choices, right? I mean, he’s the number one pound-for-pound guy in the sport,” said Thomas.

He further added, “He’s the UFC lightweight champion. But if Shavkat, well, first of all, Belal is going to fight JDM. I suppose he could go up and fight JDM. I don’t know how the UFC would feel about that. That seems like a maybe, but it’s just an ‘I don’t know, maybe.” According to Thomas, Topuria deserves the title shot against Makhachev, but does he have enough tools in his arsenal to fight against the P4P number one? According to former bantamweight champion, Dominick Cruz, ‘El Matador’ has enough.

Dominick Cruz ascertains Ilia Topuria has enough gears to deal with Islam Makhachev

Islam Makhachev is arguably one of the most well-rounded fighters in the MMA world. The lightweight champion has been dominating his opponents since claiming the title. However, many within the community believe that Ilia Topuria has the tools to defeat him—and Dominick Cruz is now among those who share that belief. While having a conversation with Helen Yee, Dominick Cruz confessed that he believes Ilia Topuria will give Islam Makhachev a hard time.

“He has the tools. It’s keep it on the feet, dictate the range, and keep Makachev on his heels. If you keep a wrestler on his heels, it’s hard for them to time the shot. Never in wrestling, in the pure sport of wrestling, are you to be moving back. If you’re moving back, the point usually gets scored for the other guy,” said Dominick Cruz.

While giving his thoughts on the aspects of grappling, Cruz laid out a plan for Topuria to fight against Makhachev, “So, if you keep Makachev moving back with good striking defense and he’s able to stuff a couple of the takedowns, I think he can get the momentum going in his favor and give himself a really good chance.”

Islam Makhachev has already defeated Alexander Volkanovski twice in his MMA career and going past against Ilia Topuria will be no big deal for him but the MMA veterans have other thoughts. Given that, what are your opinions on the matchup? State your thoughts in the comments below.