Days after Islam Makhachev's welterweight move, Ilia Topuria calls him "the biggest hypocrite"

Ilia Topuria sees a certain level of hypocrisy in Islam Makhachev's recent decision-making processes. The quote initially came from a chat that the former featherweight champion had with X user @KOlmeneroMMA, which was subsequently shared by another X user, @acdmma_.

Topuria vacated his 145-pound championship to pursue his desire for lightweight gold, and it seemed like he had a defined focus on fighting Islam Makhachev, the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC today.

There were many moving parts to UFC 315, though, that seemed to inform the lightweight champion's next step. This is considering his training partner relationship with then-welterweight champion Belal Muhammad.

With Jack Della Maddalena unseating Muhammad from his 170-pound throne, the UFC has since announced that Makhachev would be vacating his belt to pursue a JDM fight. These actions from Makhachev did not sit well with Ilia Topuria, as Topuria said,

"He is the biggest hypocrite I have ever seen. He said he didn't want to give me the opportunity because I was the little guy, now he is the little guy looking for the same opportunity that I was looking for, a hypocrite."

Check out Ilia Topuria calling Islam Makhachev a hypocrite below:

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Ilia Topuria turns his focus to his UFC 317 opponent

While Ilia Topuria is seemingly dissatisfied with not getting to fight Islam Makhachev next, he ultimately did get his wish of securing a lightweight title opportunity. This will come in a clash for the vacant belt against Charles Oliveira, which is set to transpire at UFC 317.

The 28-year-old has been clear about the fact that he is a fan of Charles Oliveira, not just as a fighter but as a man in general. That being said, Topuria is clearly focused and putting his personal feelings aside to achieve his dream based on recent comments made to the aforementioned @KOlmeneroMMA on X. When addressing his assignment for June 28, Topuria quipped,

"First of all, I'd like to thank Charles for accepting the challenge. Something Islam didn't do, and he has to pay the price for Islam. Honestly, I feel really sorry for Charles, but at the end of the day, it's my job."

The Georgian/Spanish combatant was also asked about how he saw the clash with 'Do Bronx' playing out. Topuria stated,

"I don't know. With Oliveira, the truth is, whatever is least painful for him, that's what I'll do because I like him a lot."