Fighters are beginning to form a queue to be next-in-line to fight Conor McGregor after he goes up against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 on June 29th, and the latest to throw his hat in the ring is current featherweight champion ilia Topuria.
“I hope to defend the belt with Max Holloway and then I want a fight with Conor McGregor,” Topuria told Sportskeeda. “If he wins his upcoming fight [against Chandler], that’s the fight I’m looking for – hopefully, that fight’s going to happen.”
However, in a recent live Q&A, McGregor appeared to have little enthusiasm to fight Topuria and suggested that he would struggle to successfully defend his belt against Max Holloway.
“Holloway is too light, too fast, I think Holloway picks him apart if they fight…” McGregor said. “Topuria for me is a non-champion in my opinion, he might have a strap but it’s a meaningless strap in my opinion as he holds it, I don’t see any attraction to it.”
In all fairness though, Topuria also sounds uncertain as to whether McGregor will beat Chandler.
“Chandler is a very tough fighter too but I don’t know. Conor, he’s something special,” Topuria said.
“You never know which McGregor will turn up on June 27. When he goes inside the cage, you never know. Maybe you see a knockout in 15 seconds or 10 seconds. Or maybe you see how he broke his leg or how someone knocks him out.”
“something you always know is that you’re going to see something spectacular in the fight; something’s going to happen,” Topuria added.
