Islam Makhachev vacates UFC lightweight title, will challenge for welterweight belt
Islam Makhachev, 27-1, has vacated his UFC lightweight title and will move up to welterweight to challenge newly crowned champion Jack Della Maddalena at a date and location yet to be determined.
The 33-year-old Russian defeated Charles Oliveira to win lightweight gold in 2022 and successfully defended the strap four times including two wins over current featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski, and submission victories over Dustin Poirier and Renato Moicano.
As a result of the the vacancy at 155-pounds, former champion Charles Oliveira and former featherweight champion Ilia Topuria will meet for the belt on June 28 at UFC 317 in Las Vegas.
TWO title fights headline IFW 👊@TopuriaIlia vs @CharlesDoBronxs World Lightweight Title🏆@PantojaMMA vs @KaiKaraFrance World Flyweight Title 🏆#UFC317 | Tickets on sale Friday pic.twitter.com/Qdhj6DjpG4
— UFC (@ufc) May 13, 2025
Della Maddalena just won the title after defeating welterweight champion Belal Muhammad in the main event at UFC 315 over the weekend.
