Islam Makhachev’s ex-teammate wonders if Ilia Topuria’s lightweight move was caused by Jean Silva: “He didn’t clear out his division"
Islam Makhachev's next fight is yet to be decided. But if fans had any say in the matter, then he would almost certainly fight Ilia Topuria, who has called for a clash with the champion. However, following UFC 314 on April 12, an ex-teammate of Makhachev's posted a video on X, sharing a theory that Topuria moved from featherweight to lightweight to avoid Jean Silva.
Silva faced Bryce Mitchell on the main card of the event, securing a submission win in Round 2. 'La Leyenda' faced Mitchell at UFC 282, where he also won via second-round submission.
Josh Thomson, a former training partner of the Dagestani, shared his thoughts on Topuria potentially vacating the featherweight title to avoid facing Silva. He said:
"Let me just ask you guys this, did Ilia Topuria flee to get away from guys like this? 'Cause he didn't clear out his division. I know it's probably a little controversial... Bottom line is there was still work to be done at 145 pounds for Ilia Topuria, and Jean Silva looked fantastic tonight."
Thomson added:
"Jean Silva made it look a lot easier than Ilia did fighting Bryce Mitchell. That should tell you a lot. MMA math, it doesn't always add up. But in this situation it seemed very comparable."
Check out Islam Makhachev's teammate discuss Ilia Topuria below:
Ilia Topuria previews his submission plans for Islam Makhachev
Ilia Topuria secured knockout victories over Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway, before vacating the 145-pound belt and moving to lightweight in search of more gold.
Topuria has eyes on the 155-pound champion, Islam Makhachev, who has reigned down terror on the division since 2016. Makhachev holds a divisional record of four title defenses, and is considered arguably the best lightweight of all-time.
Topuria believes that he can submit the Dagestani fighter, and shared his plans to defeat the 33-year-old during a recent podcast appearance with Patrick Bet-David. He said:
"Me, personally, I would ask him, 'What's your favorite submission?... D'Arce choke? I'm gonna submit you with that' ... I'll take him close to Khabib. I will submit him close to Khabib... Khabib used to take people on his shoulders, take them down and talk to Dana... I will take [Makhachev] and talk to Khabib, 'Khabib, I have to do it.'"
Check out Ilia Topuria's comments on Islam Makhachev below (54:40):