Is Khabib Sabotaging Ilia Topuria’s UFC 317 Title Shot?: ‘He’s Going to Say No’
Is Khabib the one keeping Ilia Topuria from jumping the line and challenging for Islam Makhachev’s lightweight title?
Earlier this year, UFC CEO Dana White revealed that Topuria would vacate the featherweight championship in favor of a move up to 155. Though nothing was officially announced, the prevailing theory was that ‘El Matador’ would be the next man to challenge the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ during this year’s International Fight Week festivities in Las Vegas.
However, that may no longer be the case.
According to former two-division titleholder Henry Cejudo, ‘The Eagle’ is doing everything he can to block Topuria from getting the next crack at his protege.
“I remember talking to Khabib, and Khabib said it’s not fair for Ilia to skip the line and go after the title shot with Islam because that’s all Islam’s been doing,” Cejudo told MMA Junkie. “He gave (Alex) Volkanovski a couple (of title shots) where he’s gone up. So I don’t even think it’s going to be Islam’s choice. I think Khabib is going to step in and be like, ‘He needs to fight the No. 1 contender.’ He’s going to say no, so for that reason, I am guessing it’s going to be Justin Gaethje vs. Islam Makhachev, International Fight Week.”
While one could claim that Khabib is trying to dodge the most dangerous fight for Makhachev, ‘The Eagle’ does have a point. Makhachev’s first two title defenses came against Alexander Volkanovski, who was the featherweight champion at the time.
His only defenses since then came against legitimate lightweight contender Dustin Poirier, whom he defeated via a fifth-round submission at UFC 302, and Renato Moicano, a last-minute replacement for Arman Tsarukyan who bowed out of the bout less than 48 hours away from fight night.
If Not Ilia Topuria, then who?
With ‘The Diamond’ scheduled for one more fight before laying down his gloves, Cejudo thinks Topuria could make a good opponent for Poirier’s swan song.
As for how Charles Oliveira plays into the equation, ‘Triple C’ thinks ‘Do Bronx’ wants nothing to do with Topuria, which could result in him being benched until things are a little clearer atop the division.
“They could probably give Ilia Dustin Poirier in Louisiana,” Cejudo continued. “Because I’m thinking Charles (Oliveira) doesn’t want to fight Ilia Topuria. He says, ‘I’ll fight him when I’m champ,’ so I don’t know how much pull he has there. But if a fighter is saying he won’t fight somebody for a title shot because he already did get that opportunity and lost, he doesn’t have leverage. The UFC will just shelve you. So, I can see Ilia Topuria vs. Dustin Poirier.”
With Topuria being potentially blocked and Tsarukyan going “back to the drawing board,” Justin Gaethje makes the most sense. The Highlight’ has won three-straight in the division, not including his BMF title tilt with Max Holloway at UFC 300.
He also holds the No. 3 spot in the lightweight division, making him a logical choice if the promotion can’t get Khabib and Co. to sign on the dotted line for a fight with Topuria.
