Arman Tsarukyan will be facing off against the UFC lightweight champion, Islam Makhachev in UFC 311. While Tsarukyan will be looking to get his hands on the title, Makhachev would want to further extend his legacy after being at the top of the division for a significant amount of time. However, apart from his own fight, ‘Ahalkalakets’ is also looking interested in the future potentials that his division presents.
And one of the main names circulating is that of Ilia Topuria. After dominating the likes of Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway back-to-back, Topuria expressed his wishes to transition into the lightweight division. Ahead of his much-hyped UFC 311 main event, Tsarukyan stated that he was in favor of Topuria making the move.
“He should move to 155 because he has a big name. As much as we have big names in our division, it’s gonna be better for us, you know. We gonna make more money, and our weight class gonna be like, you know, famous. It’s still famous,” the number one lightweight title contender stated in a recent interaction with MMA Junkie.
Arman Tsarukyan thinks Ilia Topuria would be a stellar addition to the UFC lightweight division.
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) January 11, 2025
"He has a big name. As much as we have big names in our division, it’s better for us."
(via @MikeBohn) pic.twitter.com/QEDGruEpV1
This was quite an interesting take from Tsarukyan. Previously, the current champion, Makhachev did not show interest in Topuria’s claims of becoming a two division champion. Meanwhile, there were rumors circulating about Topuria vacating his featherweight title. Thankfully for the fans, the champ himself debunked it.
Ilia Topuria Debunks Claims About Vacating Featherweight Title
After Ilia Topuria expressed his wish of moving upto the lightweight division, there were rumours about him vacating his title. And while such a narrative gained immense popularity, the Spaniard stated that the speculations are not true. ‘El Matador’ stated that nothing has yet been confirmed by the UFC and thus, he will be staying in his division as of now.
“I will not leave the title vacant. The decision to move up to the next category is entirely mine. I haven’t had any conversations with the UFC yet, so everything is still to be decided. Stop celebrating because I’m not going anywhere. I have conquered my division, and I will do the same in the next one,” Ilia Topuria wrote on his X account.
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I will not leave the title vacant. The decision to move up to the next category is entirely mine. I haven't had any conversations with the UFC yet, so everything is still to be decided. Stop celebrating because I’m not going anywhere. I have conquered my division and I will do…
— Ilia Topuria (@Topuriailia) December 12, 2024
Thus, there is a growing interest surrounding the UFC featherweight champion going to the next level. And while this is not confirmed, it will be interesting to see how Topuria will perform if he does make his move to lightweight in the future.
