- UFC. Dana White drops hints about Ilia Topuria's future: "We're working on a plan..."
- UFC. Ilia Topuria's dart to Charles Oliveira: "Here, I'm the one in charge"
It's not official, there is even a chance it won't happen in the short term, but the fight between Ilia Topuria (16-0) and Islam Makhachev (27-1) is the talk of the town. In every interview, what would be the fight of the year comes up, and the latest to speak on the subject is Jorge Masvidal. 'Gamebred' has a good relationship with Ilia, and has even visited him in the past at the Climent Club in Alicante, which is why he has jumped on his bandwagon for a possible fight against the Dagestani. The American fighter of Cuban descent has seen up close the great talent of 'El Matador', and has no doubt that he will be a lightweight champion.
"Topuria vs Makhachev? I would bet the house on Ilia. I've seen Ilia go up against high-level wrestlers, guys who have wrestled their whole lives. Olympians. One mistake, and they give up," Masvidal said in an interview with 'Adversity Kings'. Topuria's detractors claim that he would have nothing to do against Makhachev's grappling skills, when the reality is that where 'El Matador' really excelled in his early days as a professional was on the ground. Proof of this is the seven submissions he achieved in his first seven fights.
I've seen Ilia face high-level wrestlers, guys who have been wrestling all their lives
Georgian wrestling has proven to be second to none when it comes to Dagestani grappling, as evidenced by Merab Dvalishvili's victory over Umar Nurmagomedov in January. In fact, Topuria has even said that he could submit Makhachev, words that gain strength if we add them to Masvidal's recent comments. According to Dana White, in the next two weeks there will be news about 'El Matador's' next fight, who is still waiting to know if he will fight for the belt or against another contender in the division.
An almost impossible return
Beyond these statements, Jorge Masvidal fueled rumors a few months ago about a possible return to the UFC. The American is one of the most violent fighters to have ed through the company, as well as having the fastest KO in history against Ben Askren. With that flying knee Jorge jumped to stardom, to later fight for the welterweight belt on two occasions - both against Kamaru Usman
In the first fight, he accepted the fight on short notice and lost on points, but in the second fight he received an incredible KO by the Nigerian that was the beginning of the end for him. Since those two fights, the former BMF champion did not win again in the company, which led him to make the decision to retire.
However, at the end of 2024, he declared that he wanted to return for UFC 314 in Miami. Unsurprisingly, 'Gamebred' will not return on that card. Still, the American Top Team fighter has not been idle, as he has fought in boxing against Nate Diaz - he lost on points - and has set up his own company called 'Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA'. In addition, he continues to make headlines like this last one about Ilia