UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping doesn’t want to see UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski move back up to lightweight just yet.
Volkanovski (26-2 MMA, 13-1 UFC) notched his fifth title defense when he stopped Yair Rodriguez by TKO in the third round in this past Saturday’s UFC 290 main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Volkanovski, who fell short against lightweight champ Islam Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) this past February at UFC 284, is eager to run things back. However, with Ilia Topuria (14-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) emerging as a top contender following a five-round beatdown of Josh Emmett less than three weeks ago, Bisping wants to see Volkanovski stick to featherweight.
“He tried last time out,” Bisping said on the BT Sport post-fight show. “He has a division to defend, so does Islam Makhachev. There are a lot of contenders certainly at lightweight, and there’s a clear No. 1 contender, Ilia Topuria. That is the guy that he should fight next.”
That doesn’t mean Bisping doesn’t think Volkanovski should attempt to become dual champion again. He sees massive fights for him at 155 pounds but doesn’t want them to happen right now.
“I would love to see him go up to lightweight again,” Bisping said. “I would love to see him maybe beat Topuria, maybe one more, and then move up to lightweight because I want to see him up there against the likes of Justin (Gaethje), Dustin Poirier, (Charles) Oliveira, Islam, all those people. I mean, they are blockbuster fights waiting to happen, and of course try and become a double champ, as well. But he’s got to give Topuria what he has earned.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 290.