Feb 17, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Ilia Topuria celebrates his championship victory against Alexander Volkanovski during UFC 298 at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images LAS VEGAS — Ilia Topuria’s emergence as one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world has propelled him to the biggest stage of his career as he takes on former champion and future Hall of Famer Charles Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title on Saturday night at UFC 317.
The bout headlines International Fight Week, which has become the UFC’s Super Bowl weekend equivalent since debuting ahead of UFC 148 in 2012. Anderson Silva, Jon Jones and Conor McGregor are among the stars who have taken part in the week’s marquee fight over the years.
In McGregor’s case, his showmanship leading up to a second-round TKO of Chad Mendes at UFC 189 in 2015 marked one of the defining moments in his rise to mainstream superstardom.
It’s no secret that the undefeated Topuria, who ranks third on UFC’s pound-for-pound list, seeks a similarly defining moment Saturday. The former featherweight champion has been adamant that he believes a stoppage is coming within the first two or three minutes of the fight.
Saturday will mark Topuria’s return to the lightweight division after he vacated the featherweight belt in April in pursuit of becoming a two-division champion. And best believe Topuria knows what kind of statement knocking out a legend like Oliveira in the first round would make.
“(It would say) I’m the best fighter in the world,” Topuria said. “It’s not about if I’m going to win the belt; I’m going to do it. I’m going to knock him out in the first round … If you beat legend after legend, you’ll eventually become a legend.”
Topuria won the featherweight belt in February 2024 with a second-round knockout of former champion Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 before succeeding in his lone title defense against Max Holloway at UFC 308 in October. He has bounced between weight classes throughout his career, having fought professionally at bantamweight, featherweight and lightweight.
A significant reason for Topuria’s insistence that Saturday’s fight will end so early is his respect for the fact Oliveira will be on the attack as soon as the bell rings. In Oliveira’s eyes, meanwhile, he sees Topuria joining the long list of opponents who have made empty promises to put him down.
“In reality, everyone knows what’s going to happen,” said the 35-year-old Oliveira, who has not worn the title belt since 2022. “He’s another guy talking who’s going to fold in front of me. This is something huge. About legacy, about dreams, about how much I’m alive and hungry for it. That’s what I am. I’m going to be a champion again.”
The co-main event features champion Alexandre Pantoja, who is making his fourth flyweight title defense against fourth-ranked Kai Kara-France. Pantoja is currently tied for ninth in the UFC’s pound-for-pound fighters ranking. Kara-France previously fought Brandon Moreno for the interim flyweight championship at UFC 277, losing by TKO at 4:34 in the third round.
Main Card:
–Ilia Topuria vs. Charles Oliveria for the vacant UFC lightweight championship
–Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Kara-France for the UFC flyweight championship
–Brandon Royval vs. Joshua Van
–Beneil Dariush vs. Renato Moicano
–Payton Talbott vs. Felipe Lima
–Will Despart, Field Level Media
