Pound-for-pound king Islam Makhachev\u2019s recent comments have sparked buzz in the MMA community. In a recent interview, he showed interest in fighting \u201cEl Matador\u201d at the UFC White House. The 34-year-old said:<\/p>\n
\u201cI like this idea [of facing Ilia Topuria] if UFC wants it\u2026I\u2019m ready.\u201d [via Telegraf]<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udea8\ud83d\ude33 Islam Makhachev states he wants to fight Ilia Topuria on the UFC White House Card in June.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like this idea, if UFC wants it\u2026I\u2019m ready.\u201d<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udc40 Dana White previously said the UFC have started to put together matchups for the White House card and will possibly be done by the\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/CpRKiZa1La<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) February 11, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Meanwhile, Topuria has been calling out the Russian, even before the 29-year-old moved up to lightweight.<\/p>\n Ali Abdelaziz gives an update on Islam Makhachev and Justin Gaethje, while giving little importance to Ilia Topuria\u2019s big plans<\/p>\n Islam Makhachev<\/a> and current and two-time interim UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje\u2019s manager just made it clear that Gaethje will fight for the undisputed 155-pound title next, and Makhachev is also looking to defend his 170-pound strap against a \u201creal welterweight.<\/p>\n Hence, if Topuria chooses not to unify the titles with Gaethje, then \u201cThe Highlight\u201d will still compete for the belt against another top contender. <\/p>\n Ali Abdelaziz also added that if Islam Makhachev wants to face Topuria, it will ultimately be the pound-for-pound king who decides when and where the fight will happen. The MMA manager posted on X:<\/p>\n \u201cJust to be clear @Justin_Gaethje is fighting next for the undisputed Lightweight title, and if Topuria doesn\u2019t want, then Justin will fight for the undisputed title against whoever is next, and if Islam wants to give Topuria this a*s-whooping then he will be the one who will choose where and when, but Islam\u2019s next fight will definitely be against a real welterweight.\u201d<\/p>\n Check out Ali Abdelaziz\u2019s post below:<\/p>\n Just to be clear @Justin_Gaethje<\/a> is fighting next for the undisputed Lightweight title and if Topuria doesn\u2019t want then Justin will fight for the undisputed title against whoever is next, and if Islam wants to give Topuria this ass whooping then he will be the one who will choose\u2026<\/p>\n \u2014 Ali Abdelaziz (@AliAbdelaziz00) February 14, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Ilia Topuria<\/a> does not plan to dodge Gaethje and has shown interest in locking horns with the latter on June 14 at the White House. However, if given the opportunity, he would want to fight Makhachev over any other opponent. <\/p>\n Topuria plans to defend<\/a> his lightweight strap once before moving up to chase a third belt. <\/p>\n However, the promotion is mapping the UFC White House event\u2019s fighter lineup, and it wouldn\u2019t be a surprise<\/a> if fans see Makhachev vs. Topuria featured on the card. Given that the card is billed as a once-in-a-lifetime event, Dana White, Hunter Campbell<\/a>, and others are likely to do whatever it takes to make it truly unforgettable.<\/p>\n