Joe Rogan has suggested two ‘crazy’ UFC title fights that would see Ilia Topuria fight Islam Makhachev.
Topuria is the UFC featherweight champion, having knocked out Alexander Volkanovski to win the 145-pound strap last February.
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The Spaniard then defended the belt against Max Holloway eight months later, handing the UFC legend the first knockout defeat of his career.
Ever since his emphatic victory over Holloway, Topuria has been rumoured to move up a division to fight Islam Makhachev in what would be a mouthwatering clash for MMA fans.
Volkanovski attempted to dethrone Makhachev of his UFC lightweight title at 155 pounds by doing the same in 2023.
The Australian came close in the first encounter, losing to a razor-thin unanimous decision, before getting brutally knocked out in the rematch just three minutes into the main event of UFC 294.
“As crazy as it sounds, I hope Ilia goes up to 155. I really do,” Rogan said on JRE Fight Companion during UFC 312.
“Volkanovski vs Diego Lopes at 145, Ilia goes up to 155. I don’t care if he only defended the title one time or didn’t. Who cares? Let’s go. Let’s f****ing go.”
Former UFC fighter Matt Serra was a guest for the podcast episode and suggested that Topuria should defend his 145-pound title a few more times before moving up.
But Rogan dismissed that notion, saying: “Yeah, it’d be nice. But also who cares? Let’s go. Let’s f***ing go.”
“If you want to make that big fight in July, is it the Volkanovski rematch? I don’t know. I think people want to see Volkanovski win one.”
Diego Lopes is on a five-fight UFC win streak and his last two victories over Brian Ortega and Dan Ige have put his name in the mix for a future featherweight title shot.
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Therefore, if Topuria moved up a division to fight Makhachev, the 145lb title may be left vacant, meaning Lopes could battle Volkanovski to claim it.
Volkanovski first won UFC gold by defeating Holloway in 2019, defending the featherweight strap a whopping five times, before losing it to Topuria.
The UFC are currently in the process of negotiating fights for International Fight Week.
International Fight Week is an annual event organised by the UFC, which takes place in Las Vegas usually in the first week of July.
Jon Jones vs Tom Aspinall is currently the biggest fight Dana White could possibly put on for that period.
Jones is the UFC heavyweight champion and has been called out by the Aspinall on several occasions ever since the Brit became the division’s interim champion in 2023.
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Topuria vs Makhachev would also be a blockbuster meeting the UFC could put on this summer.
Makhachev is on a 15-fight win streak in the UFC, which has led to the Russian claiming the 155lb title and defending it four times.
He has been victorious over the likes of Charlies Oliveira, Volkanovski and Dustin Poirier in his UFC title fights.
Several MMA fans are eager for the UFC to put on more ‘big name’ fights with many of them believing there is a severe lack of stars currently fighting in the promotion.
Light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira and Jones are the only real global superstars who currently hold UFC titles.
“We are approaching a territory right now, where it feels like there is a bit of a superstar shortage,” MMA journalist Ariel Helwani said at the beginning of this month.
“Israel Adesanya is not a top guy anymore, at least as of right now it is a problem. He is beloved.
“You don’t have Sean O’Malley as champion, who knows if, when, Conor McGregor ever fights again.
“Who knows how many fights Jon Jones has left. There is a superstar shortage right now.”
Pereira is set to defend his 205lb title against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 in March.
However, UFC fans are hopeful to see several other big fights in what could end up being another huge year for MMA’s biggest league.
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