Islam Makhachev had a lot to say during the UFC 317 pay-per-view (PPV) main card, live tweeting his thoughts on the lightweight bout between Beneil Dariush and Renato Moicano, as well as the “crazy” flyweight showdown pitting champion Alexandre Pantoja against Kai Kara-France.
Both Dariush and Pantoja prevailed.
But when it came time for Ilia Topuria to battle Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title that Makhachev vacated in his move to 170 pounds, the promotion’s top pound-for-pound fighter went silent on social media and has yet to acknowledge the stunning performance from “El Matador.”
Instead, longtime coach, Javier Mendez, did all the talking.
“I see Justin Gaethje potentially giving [Topuria] some problems,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “Arman Tsarukyan would be the one that, in my opinion, might give him the most problems because Arman’s not going to stand with him. Arman’s going to make it a grappling war, so it’s going to be a war of attrition.”
It appears neither Gaethje nor Tsarukyan will be getting the next title shot.
“Can Ilia survive the continuous ground attack that Arman’s going to put on him? That would be the test,” Mendez continued. “Can he do that? I don’t know. Maybe he can. Look what he did to Charles. Charles came in for the takedown, he freaking switched it on him in midair. That was very impressive.”
The victory gave the undefeated Topuria (17-0) a second title in as many weight classes.
Makhachev (27-1) is unlikely to make his return to 155 pounds unless he fails in his quest to defeat Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight title. No word yet from matchmakers on when that fight will become official, but late 2025 at one of the promotion’s overseas fight cards seems likely.
