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Charles Oliveira's views on fighting Ilia Topuria stand in sharp contrast to Chael Sonnen's comments. Topuria, the former UFC featherweight champion, vacated his title to chase a second championship belt in the lightweight division.
Although there have been discussions about him receiving a title shot against current champion Islam Makhachev later this year, it was recently reported that Makhachev's team has refused to grant him an immediate title opportunity.
This situation has opened the door for a potential title eliminator bout between Topuria and top lightweight contenders such as Oliveira, Justin Gaethje, and Arman Tsarukyan. In a recent episode of the Good Guy / Bad Guy podcast, Sonnen claimed that Oliveira told him he would not fight Topuria unless he won the lightweight title.
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"[Oliveira] said, 'Chael, I'll only fight [Topuria] if he wins the belt. If he comes up and can prove that he belongs here, he's the world champion, I will then fight him."
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However, Oliveira, in a recent interview with Oddspedia, clearly stated that he would fight the opponent UFC chooses for him, and gave his opinion on a potential fight against Topuria. He said:
"Whoever I get told to fight, I'm going to fight. I have nothing but respect for Ilia Topuria, but this is lightweight. It's the most difficult division you have ever seen. I believe that I could knock Ilia Topuria out." [H/T oddspedia.com, translated from Portuguese]
Chael Sonnen questions if Ilia Topuria not fighting for the lightweight title can be justified
Ilia Topuria is in a peculiar situation after reports surfaced that Makhachev declined to fight him. Chael Sonnen expressed concerns that matching Topuria against other lightweight contenders might be pointless, especially since Topuria would still fight Makhachev if he wins.
Sonnen posed an important question - Can the UFC justify not giving Topuria a title shot? A situation that is unprecedented for a reigning champion who is moving up a weight class.
"I really can't imagine Topuria fighting and it not being for the title. Like, tha's what I feel in my heart. ... I just don't now if there's a way to do the story without going right to Islam. How are we going to justify it? How are we going to explain it? How are we going to explain that no champion has ever moved up as a reigning champion and not got an immediate title fight?"
Check out Chael Sonnen's comments below (2:40):
