Ilia Topuria wants to face the No.3 featherweight: “I want to fight with Brian Ortega”

Ilia Topuria has called for a shot against former UFC title contender Brian Ortega. 

The 25-year-old was fresh off an arm triangle submission victory over Bryce Mitchell at UFC 282. The win extended his record to 13-0 overall and 5-0 in the UFC. 

During his post-fight interview with Laura Sanko, Topuria was asked if he had a potential future opponent in mind. His answer was a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt from southern California. 

“I want to fight T-City Brian Ortega next. If the UFC brings an event to Spain that would be amazing,” Topuria said. “Maybe a title shot but I know the short man [Alex Volkanovski] is busy right now getting even more fat than he is…If it’s not him, I want to fight with Brian Ortega.”

Ortega (15-3) has suffered back-to-back losses. He last competed at UFC on ABC 3 in July, where he suffered a shoulder injury that abruptly ended his main event fight against Yair Rodriguez. Since his UFC debut in 2014, Ortega has competed for the UFC featherweight title twice. 

The Los Angeles native is arguably one of the best jiu-jitsu practitioners in the UFC. The 31-year-old has seven submission victories on his record along with three knockouts. He is also a five-time “Fight of the Night” recipient and two-time “Performance of the Night” bonus winner.

Ilia Topuria’s Title Shot Aspirations Will Have to Wait 

The Featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski will attempt to become a double champion against lightweight champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 in February. The PPV will also feature an interim featherweight title fight between Josh Emmett and Yair Rodriguez. 

“El Matador’s” win over Bryce Mitchell solidified him as a huge threat to the featherweight division. His latest dominant performance could land him a fight against higher-ranked fighters like Brian “T-City” Ortega. With another impressive win, Topuria could set himself up for a title shot in the second half of 2023.