It’s going to be a month since Dana White announced that Ilia Topuria, after successfully defending his 145lbs title once, will vacate the featherweight belt to pursue the lightweight division. Dana White revealed in a live Instagram session, “Topuria has felt like he’s done all he can in that division, and he feels like he’s cemented his legacy, and his body cannot make the weight anymore. So Topuria will be moving up to 155 pounds and will be vacating the featherweight title.”

Since then, there has been dead silence from both Dana White and the UFC regarding whether Ilia Topuria will receive an immediate title shot in the lightweight division. It seems that before ‘El Matador’ gets the chance to challenge for the title, he will first need to prove himself against some top-ranked contenders in the division, with heavy-hitting names like Dustin Poirier, Arman Tsarukyan, and Charles Oliveira being mentioned. However, neither Dana White nor the UFC has given the green light yet.

Despite this, both the media and fans continue to support the Georgian export. Recently, while enjoying some time off in his home country of Spain, before being asked about his future in the UFC, Ilia Topuria made it clear that he wasn’t aware of what the UFC had planned for him. He told reporters, “I am going to ask everyone to please not ask me any questions about my sports career, as I am not going to answer. The name of the victim is still unknown. If I were Moicano or Dan Hooker, it would probably be easier to get a fight, but being Topuria, it’s not easy.”

 Whew, talk about turning the heat on! The Georgian-Spanish subtly criticized Dana White by mentioning Dan Hooker and Renato Moicano, both known for their willingness to fight on short notice. Earlier this year, Moicano did exactly that when the top-ranked contender Arman Tsarukyan was injured just before UFC 311. Moicano, ranked #9, promptly stepped in to fill the gap. ‘The Hangman’, too, has a penchant for looking to fight division bigweights, despite ultimately pulling out of matchups against Gaethje and Tsarukyan owing to injuries; now, he’s already expressed interest in fighting at UFC 317.

Now that Ilia Topuria has vacated his featherweight title, he’s gearing up to make his move to the lightweight division. At UFC 314, former champion Alexander Volkanovski will square off against Diego Lopez. Meanwhile, amid circulating rumors, a former UFC heavyweight contender has guaranteed that a showdown between Topuria and Islam Makhachev is the next fight on the horizon. Let’s hear from the veteran.

Brendan Schaub takes a look at a potential Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria fight

Brendan Schaub believes Ilia Topuria wouldn’t vacate his title without securing a clear path to a lightweight title shot. Since his UFC debut in 2021, ‘El Matador’ has consistently stated that he doesn’t plan to stick around in the sport for too long. His goal is to replicate the rapid success of Conor McGregor, who skyrocketed through the UFC ranks and made history with his MMA career and boxing match against Floyd Mayweather Jr. Topuria is determined to follow a similar trajectory, aiming for ultimate success in the shortest time possible.

At just 28, Ilia Topuria is driven, confident, and focused on claiming the lightweight title. After defending his featherweight belt against Max Holloway, his team made it clear that he isn’t interested in facing fighters like Arman Tsarukyan or others in the division. With his experienced perspective, Schaub analyzed Dana White and the UFC’s move, sharing his take on a potential Topuria vs. Islam Makhachev title fight.

In his YouTube video, Schaub said, “I guarantee he fights Islam next—guarantee. You think Ilia was like, ‘I’ll vacate the belt and you can just toss me whoever?’ No, no, no. I guarantee he did that knowing he’s going to get a shot at Islam.”

So, what’s your take on Ilia Topuria’s future? Do you think Dana White will break the rare protocol and give him a direct title shot against Islam Makhachev, or will ‘El Matador’ need to prove himself first by taking on top-ranked contenders like Arman Tsarukyan or Dustin Poirier’s “last dance” before getting that chance? Drop your thoughts below!