"Another short guy wants to be smeshed" - Islam Makhachev reportedly reacts to Ilia Topuria's callout for 155-pound title fight
Islam Makhachev has responded to Ilia Topuria's recent callout for a 155-pound title fight down the line.
'El Matador' shocked the world earlier this month when he captured the featherweight title by stopping Alexander Volkanovski. The Georgian-Spaniard far exceeded his pre-fight confidence and broke Australian fans' hearts by finishing 'The Great' in the second round.
Topuria's win didn't just ensure his name was etched in UFC history but also saw him become the first man to defeat Volkanovski at 145 pounds.
Following his title win, Topuria's newly-fledged champion status has been in full effect as he has made some star-studded callouts. Amongst those were notable names such as former lightweight stars Conor McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Islam Makhachev.
Following his emphatic win at UFC 298, Topuria made it clear that he intends to fight Makhachev to achieve the coveted 'champ champ' status in the promotion. Hinting that he wants to move up a weight class after defending his 145-pound strap once, 'El Matador' stated:
"The final objective is still there, he's (Islam Makhachev) in trouble."
Islam Makhachev has now responded to Topuria's callout. According to @MMAUNCENSORED1 on X, the lightweight champion stated:
"Another short guy is talking. Another short guy wants to be smeshed."
Check out the post here:
What did Ilia Topuria say in his call out of Khabib Nurmagomedov?
Following his title win over Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298, Ilia Topuria has called for his next bout to be against Khabib Nurmagomedov.
'El Matador' believes he is destined to face a fighter of 'The Eagle's' stature, as both of them have yet to lose in the octagon. Nurmagomedov hung up his gloves undefeated in 29 bouts while Topuria is 15-0 in his career.
The 27-year-old 's win over Volkanovski also meant seven of those 15 victories have come under the UFC banner, which means he is only six wins behind Nurmagomedov's 13 in the promotion.
During a recent interview, Topuria not only called for his shot against Nurmagomedov but he also boldly claimed he would "100%" defeat him. He said:
''I would be happy to enter the octagon with Khabib Nurmagomedov. He had an undefeated record at 29-0 and he had an attractive record for me, then also history. He is a worthy and honorable champion for me. [I would 100% defeat him].”
Watch the clip from Ilia Topuria's interview here: