“If someone has done it, I can too. If no one has done it, I want to be the first,” Ilia Topuria said on Joe Rogan‘s podcast earlier this year, explaining the mindset that has led to achieving great things. At the moment, the former featherweight champion is set to face former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 this June, where ‘El Matador’ could become a two-division champ.

But guess what? The Spanish-Georgian superstar is just getting started. Topuria is already looking ahead and has his eyes on an unprecedented achievement– become the first ever three-division UFC champion.

“Probably a three-weight world champion, this is my goal… That’s the goal. Move up to the lightweight division, get that belt, then move up to the welterweight division,” Topuria told ‘TNT Sports’ in a recent interview. But UFC commentator and former middleweight champ, Michael Bisping, thinks that there is a good chance that doesn’t happen for one simple reason– welterweight is way too stacked.

“The number one barrier to Ilia becoming a three-weight division champion isn’t so much Islam Makhachev. It’s all the killers at 170 pounds. He’s already become a one-weight champ, a two-weight champ– I favor him to beat Charles Oliveira, so let’s just assume that’s done. And, you know, two defenses, three defenses, he’s probably gonna move up again, okay, which is crazy, okay,” ‘The Count’ said on his official YouTube channel.

“But in the welterweight division, Michael Morales– we didn’t even mention him, there’s Carlos Prates, as well you got Geoff Neal and Colby Covington, they’re kind of old school, and Steven Thompson. But the new generation of welterweights that are coming through, as I say, Carlos Prates, Michael Morales Joaquin Buckley… of course, Shavkat Rakhmonov, Sean Brady, and Jack Della Maddalena. 170 just became the glamour division of the entire UFC. It is, by far right now, the most stacked,” he added.

Bisping is right; if Topuria can beat Oliveira on June 28 and then have a couple of title defenses, he could move. The UFC probably won’t like it since it likes its champions to clean out their division before fighting for another title at a higher weight class. But ultimately, which division to fight in remains with the fighter.

But then again, Topuria perhaps doesn’t want to be just another contender at welterweight, and would like to fight for the 170-pound title as soon as he can after moving up. And for that he would have to convince the UFC. And two or three lightweight title defenses could well do the trick.

But Bisping feels that even if all that works out well for ‘El Matador’, the welterweight division just has too many killers for the former featherweight champ to win a title there. Of course, it seems like every champion wants to move up and become a double (or triple) champion, which Bisping finds absolutely infuriating.

Michael Bisping is tired of fighters like Ilia Topuria changing divisions

“All this moving around and jumping up a weight class, I know it’s sexy and people want to talk about it, and they can market it as champion versus champion– stay in your weight class and beat everybody. Simple as that,” the veteran complained on his YouTube channel.

“At lightweight Islam still got work to do,” ‘The Count declared, pointing out how there’s  Arman Tsarukyan and Justin Gaethje waiting for their lightweight title shot, as well as a host of young stars like Paddy Pimblett and Mateusz Gamrot, who look like they’ll be in the title picture soon.

But lightweight champion Islam Makhachev has moved up to 170 and will fight Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight title there. And Bisping feels that this changing of divisions is not good for the sport, or the fighters themselves, pointing out how the GOATs of the game mostly stuck to one division and earned their GOAT spurs that way.

“Everyone’s just jumping around. Stay in your weight class and defend against all of the contenders– that’s what people need to do. That’s what fighters used to do– that’s what Anderson Silva did, that’s what Georges St-Pierre did,” he said.

But this is a different generation of fighters. Conor McGregor, of course, started it all by becoming a two-division champion, which in part made him the biggest superstar of all time. Now, a double championship is considered one of the best ways to prove your greatness and leave behind a legacy to remember. What do you think about Michael Bisping’s thoughts on Ilia Topuria’s three-division title aspirations?