Who should be Ilia Topuria’s first title lightweight challenger after UFC 317

UFC 317 was an event full of fighters making big statements. However, most of those proclamations came via their actions inside the Octagon on Saturday night.

Perhaps the biggest statement of the night was in the main event, when former featherweight champion Ilia Topuria continued his run of bulldozing through some of the sport’s most notable fighters by disposing of former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira via first-round knockout to claim the lightweight belt. Before this win, Topuria picked up knockout wins over Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway.

Earlier in the night, the men’s flyweight division took center stage as Alexandre Pantoja and Joshua Van earned impressive wins over Kai Kara-France and Brandon Royval, respectively. Will their wins set up the next title fight in the 125-pound division?

Following one of the most exciting UFC pay-per-view events of the year, how should the future matchmaking play out? Here’s what should be next for the top fighters from UFC 317.

Ilia Topuria, lightweight

Who should be next: Winner of Paddy Pimblett vs. Justin Gaethje

The obvious answer is Pimblett, except that last week, Topuria told me he thought Pimblett should get one more win before fighting for a title. He said it was only “fair” to make Pimblett, ESPN’s No. 5-ranked lightweight, fight once more. It was a true statement when he said it, and it’s still true now.

Gaethje says the UFC owes him a title fight, and in a way, he’s right. It goes back to him putting a lightweight title shot on the line to do the company a favor and fight Holloway at UFC 300. The simple fact, though, is he won’t get a fight against Topuria without taking one more. He’s ranked higher than Pimblett, but Pimblett has all the fan momentum. I believe the UFC should “make it right” with Gaethje by booking the Pimblett fight, if he wants it. If he doesn’t want it, move ahead with Topuria versus Pimblett. But if Gaethje is willing to accept it and tell himself, “OK, I deserve a title shot, but sometimes you don’t always get what you deserve in this sport and I don’t want to retire,” then this fight makes sense.

Wildcard: Dustin Poirier

The wildcard of all wildcards. I doubt it’ll happen, but if Poirier were to knock out Holloway next month in what is meant to be his retirement fight in New Orleans, who is to say Topuria doesn’t ask for Poirier? Poirier is the kind of legend that doesn’t come along every day, and Topuria might want to add that to his résumé. Even if all of that were to happen, Poirier might retire anyway.

Charles Oliveira, lightweight

Who should be next: Max Holloway

This is one of those matchups that has always been there — an obvious option if and when Holloway moved up to 155 pounds. Whether he wins or loses at UFC 318 next month, fans and pundits will likely start talking about Holloway versus Oliveira. As long as Topuria is the lightweight champion, Holloway and Oliveira — both of whom Topuria has knocked out – are pretty much on the outside of the title picture, but the matchup would be a banger. Holloway and Oliveira fought once at featherweight back in 2015, and the fight was cut extremely short when Oliveira suffered a freak neck injury.

Wildcard: Retirement

Despite closing in on nearly 50 professional fights, Oliveira doesn’t seem anywhere close to retirement. He’s always maintained a healthy motivation for the game. And although he’s seemingly been around forever, he’s only 35 years old. That said, because he’s been at the top of the sport for so long, there aren’t many fights left that make much sense. He’s one of those beloved figures you don’t want to see fight just to fight. The UFC can still find fights for Oliveira and will — I truly don’t expect him to retire after this loss — but it’s worth throwing this option in as a wildcard because Oliveira has nothing left to prove.

Alexandre Pantoja and Joshua Van, men’s flyweights

What should be next: Pantoja vs. Van for the flyweight championship

Van has truly come out of nowhere. But this is the fight to make. Brandon Moreno has done more than Van in his career, of course, and he’s looked good since taking a brief hiatus from the sport in 2024, but MMA loves to go with the hot hand, and Van is on fire right now.

Kudos to the UFC for recognizing this and acting quickly on it. Pantoja wants to represent the division in the most entertaining way possible, and Van is all entertainment right now. Is he ready for Pantoja? The reasonable answer is most likely no. It all has happened so fast for the 23-year-old, and Pantoja is legitimately an all-time great. No disrespect to any matchup that came before it, but this is the most intriguing men’s flyweight title fight in recent memory.

Kai Kara-France, men’s flyweight

Who should be next: Manel Kape

It’s a bit of a heartbreaker for Kara-France. All losses are — especially title fights — but Kara-France was so emotionally and mentally invested in this title opportunity, and Pantoja did not allow him to get going. This loss will sting, but if you want to give Kara-France a matchup that will instantly turn the fire back on, it’s Kape.

These two have been eyeing one another from a distance for years. There have been different notes to the rivalry, but it boils down to a simple personal dislike for one another. They were supposed to fight in 2023 in Australia, but Kara-France suffered a concussion and was forced to bow out. This is the most obvious fight to book in the entire flyweight division right now.

Wildcard: Kai Asakura

Asakura is scheduled to face Tim Elliott at UFC 319 in August. If Asakura wins, he’ll be ranked inside the top 10, and this matchup will start to jump off the page. There are similarities between these two — namely, their high knockout potential. Whether this matchup ends up being next or happens down the road, you can bet we will eventually see Kara-France vs. Asakura in a UFC Fight Night main event or on a pay-per-view main card.

Payton Talbott, men’s bantamweight

Who should be next: Adrian Yanez

This fight showed how fickle MMA can be. Talbott was being touted as the next big thing at bantamweight, but because of one poor performance against veteran Raoni Barcelos in his last bout Talbott came into this one with little hype. Felipe Lima was a significant betting favorite, and a narrative had started to form that Talbott couldn’t wrestle. It was a big bounce-back win that puts Talbott right back to where he was before the Barcelos loss. I tend to want to give him the matchup he wants, which is Yanez, whom he mentioned in his postfight interview. Yanez once had a lot of hype but has struggled with some inconsistent performances. Talbott’s swag is back, and one would think Yanez would be excited to face a budding prospect who has been calling him out.

Wildcard: Aleksandre Topuria

The UFC should want eyes on Talbott. Lima was a big test six months after a fight in which Talbott’s grappling wasn’t up to speed. He earned the promotion’s attention to the point that it should be reinvested in his progress. Aleksandre, older brother of Ilia, would be a great way to attract attention to both bantamweights.