Ilia Topuria continues to dominate the lightweight division and stir the pound-for-pound conversation. At UFC 317, he flattened Charles Oliveira with a first-round knockout, adding another former champion to his growing list of finishes.
The win not only secured his second divisional title but also ignited debates about what comes next for the undefeated Spanish-Georgian.
Immediately after the fight, Topuria listed off potential challengers, including Arman Tsarukyan. But when it came time for a callout, he zeroed in on longtime rival Paddy Pimblett. That led to a tense in-cage faceoff and a brief shove that forced security to intervene. While the crowd ate it up, UFC veteran Matt Brown wasn’t impressed with the direction Topuria seemed to be heading.
“It’s probably going to be Paddy but it should goddamn well be Arman,” Brown said on The Fighter vs. The Writer. “We know that right? Of all the amazing things that Ilia has done so far, the fact that he called up Paddy, I’m not going to say he was ducking Arman, but he wanted that fight to be next. What I want to see personally, not saying this is the way everybody should feel, but I want to see him fight Arman. I think if he goes out and beats Arman, especially in a good fashion, but just beats him period, that to me is bigger than beating Charles, personally.”
Pimblett’s popularity guarantees eyeballs and a big payday, but Brown doesn’t believe he belongs in the title picture. In his eyes, Tsarukyan, currently riding a four-fight win streak and fresh off a split decision over Oliveira at UFC 300 has earned the shot.
“Paddy has not earned that,” Brown continued. “He just does not deserve to be there. Even other guys other than [Justin] Gaethje and Arman that deserve to be there.”
Matt Brown sees Tsarukyan as a legacy opponent for Topuria. If Topuria handles business against the Armenian standout, Brown believes it elevates his résumé to all-time great status. In fact, he didn’t hesitate to compare the run to that of UFC legend Jon Jones.
“Ilia to me is on the verge of we start comparing him to like Jon Jones,” Brown said. “To me, if he goes out and beats an Arman or maybe Islam [Makhachev] moves back down or [Ilia] moves up if Islam wins or [he fights Jack] Della Maddalena, we’re starting to talk about Jon Jones-level greatness. Start making comparisons, but if he goes out and beats a Paddy, he’ll go back and fight some of the tougher guys after that, not that Paddy’s not tough, I shouldn’t say that but we know he’ll go back and fight some of those tougher matchups after that at some point. I just want to see it now.”
Brown emphasized that the level of competition Topuria has already faced Oliveira, Volkanovski, Holloway, far exceeds what many champions dealt with during their early title reigns. He believes Topuria is already surpassing what Jones achieved during his legendary three-fight stretches.
“I want to see the run keep going,” Brown said. “That’s my biggest criticism of Jon Jones. He did eventually kind of taper off in terms of level of competition. I want to see Ilia go fight the baddest dudes and just see if he’s all that. If he can beat Arman next, that’s a pretty strong seal right there, especially I guess he probably won’t get the Islam fight depending on what happens with him and Della Maddalena. Outside of moving up to 170, Arman is the one that makes the most sense in terms of greatness.”
Despite the fanfare surrounding a potential clash with Pimblett, likely in Las Vegas, Brown continues to push for the Tsarukyan matchup. From a competitive and legacy standpoint, it’s the fight that solidifies Topuria’s place in history.
“It sounds like it’s probably going to be set with [Paddy Pimblett] and it’s going to be a gigantic fight,” Brown said. “I’m going to argue to the end it should be Arman. I want to see that fight. I think if Ilia goes out and beats Arman, it certainly adds to the argument that he is the greatest ever.”
While Topuria hasn’t ruled out a future move to welterweight or a superfight with Makhachev, the immediate question is legacy versus business. Matt Brown has made his stance clear, the path to Jon Jones-level greatness runs through Arman Tsarukyan, not Paddy Pimblett.
