Ilia Topuria faces rejection from Charles Oliveira as former champ sets eyes on Dagestani

Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira picks Islam Makhachev for PPV title rematch, over new blood Ilia Topuria.

Ilia Topuria faces rejection from Charles Oliveira as former champ sets eyes on Dagestani

Charles Oliveira opts for Islam Makhachev PPV title rematch over Ilia Topuria (Source: X/IMAGO)

Former UFC lightweight champ Charles Oliveira isn’t sure how he’ll play into the convoluted 155-pound lineup. But one thing he knows for sure is he wants to fight for the undisputed gold. To that end, he does not prefer top contenders like Ilia Topuria or anyone else. ‘Do Bronxs’ is shooting straight for Islam Makhachev.

Ilia Topuria has shaken the 155-pound division with a surprise insertion. He relinquished the stake to his 145-pound gold for a move to lightweight. Meanwhile, he has made his goals about challenging Islam Makhachev known. Topuria was even willing for 155-pound top seed battles with Charles Oliveira and others. Oliveira, though, has other plans.

At this point, I don’t see Ilia Topuria as a big fight. I want to fight for the title against Islam Makhachev at International Fight Week…

Charles Oliveira in a media interview with ABC.es and KOlmenero (@KOlmeneroMMA)

The IFW festivities kick off on 26 June in Las Vegas with the return of UFC X and HOF in tow. The event concludes with a UFC 317 PPV card on 28 June at the T-Mobile Arena. Charles Oliveira, who had the promise for UFC 155-pound top seed treatment after UFC 309, wants in.

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Arman Tsarukyan, the man who defeated him before that, had the top contender spot. But after his UFC 311 injury pullout, the Armenian accepted his fate to go back to square one. Tsarukyan does rank No. 1 in the lightweight division.

As it stands, Tsarukyan vs. Oliveira 2 solves two problems for the top spot in one. The Team Chute Boxe – Diego Lima standout also has other options. After the UFC 313 PPV co-main barnburner, Justin Gaethje seems like a good bet. Oliveira was ready to welcome all these names. including Topuria if need be. But tunnel visioned for gold, he’d rather opt for that. As for Topuria’s placement and intro into the weight class again, one has to wonder.

Ilia Topuria and prime foe Paddy Pimblett squash beef to momentarily dap it up at UFC London weigh-ins

UFC 155-pound entrant Topuria has had his taste in lightweight before. It was a lone 2022 Fight Night second-round knockout win over Jai Herbert. Scouser Paddy Pimblett fought on the same UK card and got into a near-brawl with the fighter. Ever since Topuria vs. Pimblett seemed like a safe bet and a thrilling option to fall back to at lightweight.

Ilia Topuria gets small reprieve from bad blood, while gunning for Islam Makhachev's gold
Ilia Topuria gets small reprieve from bad blood, while gunning for Islam Makhachev’s gold (Source: X)

The duo again charged up at each other during the UFC 282 PPV media conference but nearly avoided physical confrontation. Their bad blood has never punctuated to trading blows inside the UFC octagon. But trading barbs outside and online is a whole other thing.

Pimblett recently cracked top-15 divisional athlete listings with his SOTY-worthy triangle choke at UFC 304 PPV. He even stayed ready to fight Topuria after his next assignment vs. Michael Chandler. Both fighters were on hand, Friday, for the UFC London weigh-ins, where they supported their teammates. ‘The Baddy’ got inches close to the rival but instead shared a handshake while getting off the stage.

He even quipped about it on socials. Pimblett appeared for a UFC 314 PPV pre-fight Q&A session where he even called for a non-title headliner against Ilia Topuria. Both gunning for Islam Makhachev’s belt, Pimblett wouldn’t miss the shot at headlining at any scope against such a big name. It works wonders for Topuria always if he gets past a top-10 name.

Related: Arman Tsarukyan hints at new fight by mocking Charles Oliveira’s iconic UFC one-liner: “The number one contender has a name”