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Team Ilia Topuria Reveals ‘Closest’ Contender to Get Title Shot, and It’s Not Paddy Pimblett

Originally posted on FirstSportz | Last updated Jul 7, 2025 11:31 AM ET

Ilia Topuria is the talk of fight town right now, but could only sustain for so long. Topuria relinquished his 145-pound stakes and made the jump to challenge Islam Makhachev. But that skills test is now a division apart. It didn’t take long for the focus in the 155-pound weight class to shift from his UFC 317 PPV main event KO to his potential next stiff test.

Seemingly, the fiery faceoff with now No.10-ranked lightweight Paddy Pimblett after the UFC 317 PPV main event did not guarantee a top shot. Many were opposed to it anyway, given former #1 contender Arman Tsarukyan was snubbed from the process for putting UFC 311 in jeopardy at the last minute.

While Pimblett can bank on a bitter feud with Ilia Topuria to aim for a massive PPV title fight, Michael Bisping wants #4 lightweight Justin Gaethje to get the shot next. After all, the American heavy hitter has the edge in ranking and name. It turns out Team Topuria also somewhat feels the same.

Third belt is a matter of time. For now, we’ve given our word to the UFC that we will stay at lightweight, …We’re waiting to see who comes up as the natural contender. We’d like to fight again this year. Gaethje is the closest, time will tell if it’s him.
Manager Lukasz Orzel to Kanał Sportowy (@Sportowy_Kanal)

Topuria’s team rep and manager, Lukasz Orzel, recently told Kanał Sportowy much the same, that “The Highlight” is close to warranting a shot. The former interim champ boasts a thrilling near-finish of Rafael Fiziev at the UFC 313 PPV. With 14 bonuses in 14 UFC ballot appearances, Gaethje is the best legacy name to go after.

Łukasz Orzeł, Ilia Topuria's manager, about Ilia going up to welterweight:

"Third belt is a matter of time. For now, we’ve given our word to the UFC that we will stay at lightweight. We’re waiting to see who comes up as the natural contender.

We’d like to fight again this year,… pic.twitter.com/kbrl7gXzBU
— Matysek (@Matysek88) July 3, 2025

It might be a good thing because the American lightweight faced a wide array of criticism for telling The Makeshift Podcast that he’d rather retire than fight another contender. Now, the champion is interested in Gaethje. Moreover, ‘The Highlight’ has shifted his resolve, and he too wants to challenge Topuria. One good news is that other peers also think Gaethje gets it.

Justin Gaethje has the backing of another UFC 155-pound ranked contender to be a title challenger

Gaethje has been waiting long for his shot at gold, be it Ilia Topuria or anybody else. He also had the blessing of Team Makhachev before the former champion moved to welterweight. It would have been a good change of pace as Makhachev was running into weight bully claims with numerous rematches or bookings against former or current UFC competition featherweights in his title defense stats.

After Ilia Topuria’s momentous win, Dana White made his feelings clear at the UFC 317 post-fight backstage interviews, urging Gaethje to retire after his ‘whacky’ PPV title shot ultimatum. While he hasn’t dismissed or no-goed the prospect, it’s a tough spot for Gaethje.

Although some in the community have dismissed Gaethje’s claim to another shot, “The Highlight” does have the support of one man. A contender he was supposed to face in March for a possible barnburner and natural title eliminator.

I think they wanna do Gaethje [against] Paddy, but apparently Gaethje’s not gonna take the Paddy fight, …[No] It just leaves, like, Paddy or Gaethje…The only pay-per-view sales that really count are in the North American market. And so it’s like, even though Paddy’s, like, this big star on Instagram…I don’t know if he actually really moves the needle. Gaethje moves the needle in North America, So, I think that he probably makes the UFC the most money by being champion.
Dan Hooker to Denis Shkuratov for the ‘Submission Radio’ Show for SBNation Network (: @SubmissionRadio on YT)

The Scouser is a big English name and PPV draw in the crowd, but not a top seller in the States. At least, he has not headlined major PPV events in the US yet. Meanwhile, Gaethje vs. Ilia Topuria ticks that box as both are interesting options right now, more than ever.

This article first appeared on FirstSportz and was syndicated with permission.

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