Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO, Dana White, ended 2024 by saying he has something special lined up for 2025. While nothing has been revealed at the moment regarding that particular nugget, there are several juicy bouts that await us in the new year, with most fight fans salivating for a highly-anticipated Heavyweight title fight between champion Jon Jones and interim title holder, Tom Aspinall.
But according to former UFC champ-champ, Henry Cejudo, there is another title fight that could be even bigger.
“I personally believe that (Makhachev vs. Topuria) could potentially be bigger than Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall,” Cejudo said on his “Pound 4 Pound” podcast (via MMA Junkie). “Competitively, of course, man. It’s not just that – it’s the simple fact that Ilia Topuria has a chance to become champ-champ,” said “Triple C” about a potential champion vs. champion fight.
Of course, Topuria — who currently rules the Featherweight division — expressed his desire to move up to Lightweight, where Islam Makhachev is king. If that fight comes to pass and Topuria comes out on top, Cejudo believes that would be a bigger news headline than crowning an undisputed champion at 265 pounds.
“The heavyweight division, we’ll just know who’s the real undisputed champion. But in this position, if Ilia does win, that puts him in a category of, f*ck, you beat the former pound-for-pound (best) in (Alexander) Volkanovski, you’re beating the current pound-for-pound in a guy like Islam Makhachev. Give him his flowers.”
Topuria is currently undefeated at 16-0, which includes going 8-0 inside the Octagon, defeating Alexander Volkanovski via knockout at UFC 298 to win the 145-pound strap, and then successfully defending the belt by becoming the first man to knockout Max Holloway at UFC 309 (see it again here).
Makhachev, meanwhile, is 26-1 with three straight title defenses, which was good enough to allow him to take over the No. 1 spot on the pound-for-pound-rankings over Jon Jones. Speaking of “Bones,” he made his highly-anticipated return last month at UFC 309 by knocking out Stipe Miocic in the third round (highlights).
As for Aspinall, he’s been lobbying for a fight with Jones for a while now, and was last seen knocking out Curtis Blaydes in 60 seconds at UFC 304, his third straight win. Jones hasn’t been too eager to grant the bruising Brit his wishes, but if Dana White and Co. come correct with the cash offer, that fight could happen in summer 2025.
That said, do you side with Cejudo’s stance of a potential Topuria vs. Makhachev fight dwarfing that Heavyweight collision?