UFC’s first three-time champion: Topuria vs Pereira

The UFC has never crowned a champion in three different weight classes. Today, two fighters are fighting for that unprecedented honor: Ilia Topuria and Alex Pereira. Both already hold titles in two divisions – and both are hunting a third. Two superstars who’ve toppled every legend in their path. The UFC will soon have to decide which one gets the opportunity to make history.

Topuria’s climb to greatness

Topuria has repeated it many times: one of his goals is to become a three-division champion – to do what no one has ever done before. In February last year, he captured the featherweight title by knocking out Alexander Volkanovski in the second round, handing the Australian his first-ever KO defeat (apart from his brief stint at lightweight). Eight months later came Max Holloway, a former champ who had never been knocked out. El Matador did it in the third round. One after another.

The Spanish-Georgian fighter then pushed for a move up in weight. Making 145 pounds had become a brutal task, with extreme weight cuts. At that time, the lightweight belt was held by Islam Makhachev – a direct rival in the race to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. But the Russian eventually moved up to welterweight for the same reason, and his last victim was Charles Oliveira, another former champion. That fight lasted barely two minutes.

Even though Topuria has already reached the top of the pound-for-pound rankings, he wants more. A fight with Makhachev would be the bout of the decade – the modern-day Conor McGregor vs Khabib Nurmagomedov (and Makhachev, notably, was Khabib’s protégé). Topuria has set his sights on the welterweight crown and refuses to back down.

All signs point to him making his first title defense in January, with Justin Gaethje the leading candidate. Arman Tsarukyan, meanwhile, has already been booked to headline UFC Qatar on November 22 – a card that will also feature Topuria’s brother, Aleksandre. Everything now depends on Dana White’s decision.

‘Poatan’ steps ahead

With the brutal 80-second knockout Alex Pereira delivered against Magomed Ankalaev, the Brazilian may have taken the lead in this race. Pereira reclaimed his light heavyweight crown after losing it to the Russian by unanimous decision months earlier. Although he refused to make excuses, he admitted he hadn’t been in good health for that first fight – and soon after, he asked to move up a division.

From the moment Pereira entered the UFC, he hit like a tsunami. After just three fights (all wins, including one over former champ Sean Strickland), he earned a shot at the middleweight belt. At the time, Israel Adesanya ruled the division – one of the most dominant champions, having cleared out nearly every contender. The two already had history from their kickboxing days, where Pereira had beaten Adesanya twice. Their first MMA meeting was no different: Pereira scored a knockout in the fifth round. Izzy returned the favor in the rematch, prompting Pereira to move up a class – a short reign, but one that made fans fall in love with him.

In light heavyweight, he did it all. He claimed the belt by knocking out former champ Jiri Prochazka – not once, but twice. He also stopped ex-titleholder Jamahal Hill in the first round on short notice and successfully defended against Khalil Rountree Jr. Ankalaev briefly ended his run, but the joy didn’t last long. After regaining his title, Pereira asked to move up to heavyweight – the land of Jon Jones, a perfect blockbuster matchup in the making. Tom Aspinall, the interim champion, is set to face Ciryl Gane for the undisputed belt in a few weeks, offering more big-money options.

The UFC now faces a tough choice: which of its two megastars will it let chase immortality first?

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