Diego Lopes claims the UFC isn’t any longer willing to stage champion-vs.-champion fights, and that’s why Ilia Topuria is giving up the featherweight title.
UFC CEO Dana White rocked the MMA world this week when he announced that Topuria could be giving up the 145-pound title because he thinks he’s cleaned out the division and is struggling to make the burden. Because of this, Lopes (26-6 MMA, 5-1 UFC) will face Alexander Volkanovski (26-4 MMA, 13-3 UFC) for the vacant belt within the principal event of UFC 314 on April 12 at Kaseya Center in Miami (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) has made no secrets about his desire to maneuver to lightweight and challenge Islam Makhachev, but many wondered how it will materialize. In keeping with Lopes, vacating the strap was a vital first step. He claims messaging from UFC brass indicated that Topuria getting a title shot at 155 kilos wouldn’t be in play unless he made a full commitment to the division.
“They were very clear to us that they said they are not any longer giving a probability to leap from one weight class to a different,” Lopes told ESPN in Spanish. “If you desire to move up, you will have to vacate your title. That is what the UFC has said to all of the champions who’re planning to maneuver up a weight class. They are going to not have the status of double champion concurrently.”
Diego Lopes spoke on UFC’s message to champions having to vacate their title if they appear to maneuver up 👀 #UFC314
(via @CCLegaspi) pic.twitter.com/GkTjgktH4u
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 21, 2025
There have only been limited instances of the UFC booking champion-vs.-champion fights over the course of its greater than 30-year history. Only seven such matchups have occurred, and only thrice (Conor McGregor vs. Eddie Alvarez, Daniel Cormier vs. Stipe Miocic, and Amanda Nunes vs. Cris Cyborg) did the winner emerge as a simultaneous two-division titleholder.
Outside of Nunes, there’s no situation where a UFC fighter spent a chronic period as a dual-division champ, however the UFC seemingly doesn’t even want that to occur any more.
Lopes would’ve liked to see Topuria stick around the burden class and fight more of the contenders, but he understands the reasoning behind his decision and offered his full support.
“I feel in the long run, it’s as much as each individual to determine,” Lopes said. “If (Ilia Topuria) feels he has nothing else to do within the division, well, he should move forward together with his profession. I do know that within the division we now have superb fighters that might give superb fights against him. We are able to even put him in some serious trouble and even defeat him. But when he feels that, because he defeated Max (Holloway) and (Alexander Volkanovski), who’re legends within the division, his work his done, well, it’s superb. He has the suitable to consider. So go ahead.”
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