UFC 317 feels like it could be a “where were you when” touchpoint in the careers of a pair of supreme talents that continued to prove themselves to be amongst the best pound-for-pound competitors in the sport today.
In the co-main event of the evening, flyweight ruler Alexandre Pantoja dominated dangerous Maori challenger Kai Kara-France, using his supreme edge in the grappling department to neutralize Kara-France’s greatest weapons and ultimately work to submit him just under two minutes into the third round. It was the Brazilian’s fourth consecutive successful title defence and second consecutive bout where he blew out and finished his opponent with ease, as well as his eighth straight win overall, all of which combine to scream “pound-for-pound great.”
And then we were officially ushered into The Topuria Era, as the dangerous 28-year-old claimed the vacant lightweight title with an hellacious first-round knockout win over Charles Oliveira, just as he had promised.
The win made Topuria the second fighter to hold both the featherweight and lightweight belts, the second youngest athlete to reach “double champ” status in the UFC, and put him on a trajectory where “all-time great” status doesn’t feel out of the question. It’s not just that he’s running through legends as he’s done in his last three bouts either; it’s that he’s calling his shots and doing it with style, inside and outside of the Octagon, elevating himself to the point where he is unquestionably the face of the UFC right now and the next potential global superstar for the sport.
He’s also a man that has a lot of options going forward, which we should dive into.
A SIMMERING FUED SET TO COOK
Topuria and Paddy Pimblett first started getting under one another’s skin a little over three years ago, when the former was still a featherweight and the latter had yet to fully establish himself as a threat in the lightweight division.
Words were exchanged in person and on social media, bottles of water and hand sanitizer were thrown in various directions, and as they’ve each continued to have success, they’ve always kept tabs on the other, getting in little verbal jabs here and there to make sure everyone remembers that they have a genuine dislike for one another.
Fast forward to Saturday night, where Pimblett sat in the crowd that featured several others hoping to be the first called upon to face the newly-minted champion, only to have Topuria commit his attention to the lovable Scouser, calling him into the Octagon where they got face-to-face and a little testy before being separated.
That one choice, that one interaction set the stage for what could be a massive lightweight championship fight between a pair of legitimate rivals with massive fanbases behind them.
There are going to be people that want to argue that Justin Gaethje or Arman Tsarukyan deserve the first shot at Topuria more, and on merit, that’s probably the case, but we’re not dealing with a meritocracy here. We’re talking about prize-fighting, and neither of those two fights generate as much fervour and excitement as the pairing between Topuria and Pimblett unquestionably will over the next six months.
This potential pairing — which absolutely feels like the right direction to go, in my opinion — is like a better version of Sean O’Malley facing Chito Vera in his first bantamweight title defence, as both are more engaging and charismatic than their 135-pound counterparts, and “Paddy the Baddy” has done enough to where it feels reasonable for him to be in this position given the tensions between the two. After all, he is 7-0 in the UFC and coming off an absolute drubbing of Michael Chandler.
The case for Tsarukyan is that injury cost him the opportunity to challenge Islam Makhachev for the title at UFC 311 in January. He’s 9-1 over his last 10, including a win over Oliveira, and presents a fascinating challenge for the new champion both physically and stylistically. If there wasn’t such a ready-made rivalry and easy sale of a fight sitting there ripe for the picking, a bout between Topuria and Tsarukyan, who served as the backup fighter for Saturday’s lightweight championship fight, would be an easy pick.
Gaethje’s case is a little more tenuous, as he’s already fought for the title twice before and lost, and is just one win removed from being laid out in the centre of the Octagon by Max Holloway at UFC 300. While the all-action standout would certainly be a compelling puzzle for the champion to have to solve, it feels like his status as a contender at the moment is heavily leveraged on his overall slate and how timing didn’t work in his favour during Makhachev’s reign, and less about his having put up the kind of wins that prompt you to give serious consideration to Gaethje getting a third shot at the UFC lightweight title.
The most interesting person to consider in all of this isn’t even one of the potential challengers, but rather the man that Topuria defeated on Saturday night in Las Vegas to ascend to the lightweight throne, former champ Charles Oliveira.
This was a gnarly defeat that left him with a considerable cut over his right eye and laid out in the center of the cage for more than just a beat or two. He said all week the same thing he's been saying for almost three years now — “The Champion Has a Name” — but that name clearly isn’t Charles Oliveira, and you have to wonder if this becomes the end of the line for the beloved Brazilian?
He’s just 2-2 over his last four fights, beating Beneil Dariush and Chandler, while losing to Tsarukyan and Topuria, who both happen to be 28 years old and at the vanguard of the next generation of talent surging forward in the UFC at the moment.
Titles and legacy are the two things that continue to motivate “Do Bronx,” but with how things went at UFC 317 and the abundance of options available to Topuria already, I’m not sure the 35-year-old will want to commit himself to a two-year push for one more shot that would send him into battle against a bunch of dangerous adversaries in non-title bouts, with no guarantees of victory or a title shot waiting in the wings.
Should Oliveira opt to keep soldiering forward, a matchup with either Dan Hooker or Max Holloway, should Holloway best Dustin Poirier next month and successfully defend his BMF title would make sense as marquee bouts that would provide a clear indication of where the former champion stands in the division and what the future may hold.
NEXT FLYWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT MADE ITSELF
One of the reasons it’s always great to have a No. 1 contender bout on the same card — or at least on a very similar timeline — as the latest championship battle is that once the smoke clears, you know exactly who will be facing who next and have a good idea of when that fight could take place provided everyone came away from their respective bouts without any serious injuries.
Right before Pantoja ran through Kara-France to defend his flyweight title, Joshua Van wrapped up an insane first six months of 2025 by defeating Brandon Royval in their short-notice title eliminator. It was the second win of the month for the 23-year-old native of Myanmar, his third victory already this year, and eighth in nine UFC appearances, all of which have come in the last two years.
Rather than head to the back to make the media rounds following his thrilling win over Royval in what has to be the clubhouse leader in the Fight of the Year race, Van sat out by the Octagon and watch Pantoja’s bout with Kara-France, joining the Brazilian champion in the Octagon afterwards for a tense stare down.
There are no other options to consider right now at flyweight: Pantoja wants a fresh challenge, Van just had a breakout moment in a thrilling battle that showed his toughness and moxie, as well as his skill, and there is no one else that has a strong enough case to be considered here.
As much as we all love Brandon Moreno, the former champion is 0-2 against Pantoja in the UFC, with another loss during their time on The Ultimate Fighter, and good wins over Amir Albazi and Steve Erceg just don’t feel like quite enough to put him in their with Pantoja again, not when there is a fun and exciting alternative at the ready. If Manel Kape can get healthy by September, pair him off with Moreno, because the winner of that one would then have a strong case for a championship opportunity in 2026.
QUICK HITTER OPTIONS
Beneil Dariush: After snapping a two-fight skid with a hard-earned win over Renato Moicano in Las Vegas, a pairing with Rafael Fiziev is an easy fight to make based on timelines and rankings. Both are ranked in the Top 10 and Fiziev halted a little slide of his own the previous weekend in Baku, so lining them up opposite one another later this year keeps the victor moving forward in the loaded lightweight division.
Payton Talbott: Folks jumped off the bandwagon when Talbott lost to Rani Barcelos in January, but some will likely be looking to reclaim their seats after the Reno, Nevada native earned a hard-fought win over Felipe Lima to kick off Saturday’s main card. Up next, how about Chris Gutierrez?
Gregory Rodrigues: “Robocop” closed out the prelims by thumping Jack Hermansson, and a date with Abus Magomedov or the winner of the impending clash between Paulo Costa and Roman Kopylov would be solid options.
Jose Miguel Delgado: With a pair of first-round stoppage wins to open his rookie season in the UFC, we could see the MMA Lab product get a significant step up in competition next time out. Can I interest you in a bout with Chepe Mariscal, who is unbeaten in his five UFC starts?
Tracy Cortez: Cortez got things moving in the right direction again with a grinding victory over Viviane Araujo at UFC 317. The women’s flyweight division is a little jumbled at the moment, but a rematch between Cortez and Erin Blanchfield, who fought to a split decision under the Invicta FC banner, could help clarify things in the upper tier of the 125-pound ranks.
