Which FW gets their first title shot next? And which matchup vs Ilia is most compelling?

[wolffanghameha]

Ilia got the belt. But now he's acting like he'll be a bit of a diva about who challenges him. Evloev is the closest, but Topuria doesn't seem interested due to Movsar not being exciting enough on the mic or in the ring (there was an old interview after the Bryce fight where he said fighting guys like Islam and Allen doesn't get him going, as they lack the charisma and spark).

Which of the 145ers would you guess gets their first UFC title shot next?:
Diego Lopes
Movsar Evloev
Arnold Allen
Sodiq Yusuf
Bryce Mitchell
Nathaniel Wood
Lerone Murphy
Anyone else

Imo if Ilia beats Max it's Diego. We know he can hang with the very best on the ground, his boxing is ok and his hands have enough KO power from any distance to cause problems for anyone. And he's exciting enough for Ilia to want to fight him, plus he trains in Mexico so it's a chance for Ilia to get more hispanic casuals to know who he is. Diego gets a shot with just 1-2 more wins.

If Max or Volk are champ at the end of 2024/early 2025 and choose to defend at 145 I think Evloev has a decent chance of getting a shot, because Volk/Max are happy to fight the true #1 contender.

Most compelling against Ilia is Evloev imo.

 

[svmr_db]

Evloev is one fight away from a title shot, a win over someone like Sterling or Ortega should be enough to put him in line behind Volkanovski & Holloway.

 

[filthybliss]

Lowkey think it might be Sterling if he grabs a solid win over another t10 opponent. The only issue with him is that Dana doesn't think he can sell tickets.