Ilia Topuria confirms that he decided to leave featherweight division before fighting Max Holloway

UFC star Ilia Topuria has confirmed that he decided to leave the featherweight division before even defending his belt against Max Holloway.

As we know, Ilia Topuria will attempt to become a two-weight world champion on Saturday night when he goes head to head with Charles Oliveira. The bout is expected to be an electric affair, with the majority of fans and pundits backing ‘El Matador’ to get the job done.

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Of course, it’s not exactly going to be a walk in the park – especially if ‘Do Bronx’ is able to roll back the years to when he was champion the first time around.

Topuria has always been seen as a guy who could thrive at 155 pounds and now, he’s ready to prove it. As it turns out, he’s been considering the full-time move for quite a while.

Topuria discusses featherweight departure

“Even before the fight, I was sure that I would leave the division. I already spoke to my family, to my team, and I told everyone that this is the last fight.” Topuria said.

“This is the last weight cut I’m doing. After this one, we are going to the lightweight division.

“When I became a world champion, I beat Volkanovski, and then I had Max Holloway in my division. I was like, I can’t leave the division without fighting him.

“I have to fight him. I have to beat him. And this is what I did.”

Quotes via Bloody Elbow

He may not be everyone’s favorite, but there’s no denying that Ilia Topuria is one of the baddest men on the planet today.

Do you expect to see Ilia Topuria get his hand raised in victory over Charles Oliveira this weekend at UFC 317? If so, how do you believe he’s going to get it done? Let us know your thoughts on this, BJPENN Nation!