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Jorge Masvidal reacted to Diego Lopes' plan for his hypothetical first title defense. Lopes will battle with former featherweight Alexander Volkanovski in the UFC 314 main event for the vacant 145-pound title.
The 30-year-old Brazilian was recently asked who he'd want to defend his title against first during an interview with MMA Junkie. Lopes expressed his desire to potentially defend the belt in a rematch against Movsar Evloev:
“Of course, this fight for me is important because this guy beat me in the past. But now it’s different. It’s different things. I’m at the top, and this guy, too. Maybe we’ll fight for the title. I’m so excited for the next step, but my focus is on Volkanovski. I win the belt and I will ask the UFC for the fight with Movsar [Evloev].”
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Check out Diego Lopes' comments about his hypothetical first title defense below:
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The post earned a response from Masvidal, a friend and training partner of Evloev, in the comments section. He wrote:
"👏 yes want to see this fight"
Lopes made his UFC debut on short notice in May 2023. He suffered a unanimous decision loss against Evloev but instantly became a fan favorite due to his valiant effort.
Diego Lopes on where he wants his hypothetical first title defense to take place
Diego Lopes was born in Brazil and lived in Mexico for over a decade. During the aforementioned MMA Junkie interview, Lopes wished to have his first featherweight title defense on September 13 when the UFC travels to Guadalajara, Mexico:
"One hundred percent, this is my goal... Win the fight next week and I will ask the UFC for the fight in Guadalajara. For me, to defend the title in Guadalajara, Mexico, is special for me, because I’ve lived in Mexico for 10 years. I live in Guadalajara. I have so much people in Guadalajara support me. One hundred percent, I will fight to defend the belt in September.”
Since losing against Movsar Evloev, Lopes has won five consecutive fights, including his last three against Sodiq Yusuff, Dan Ige, and Brian Ortega. Lopes now looks to add the legendary Alexander Volkanovski to his resume at UFC 314.
