Why the UFC should pick Lopes, not Volkanovski, to fight Topuria next

Before UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria could even let his knockout win over Max Holloway sink in, the apparent next guy up - a former victim of his, Alexander Volkanovski - was walking into the Octagon to try to sell a rematch.

That's the nature of the sport. You fight, and then it's on to the next one. Topuria - who became the first person to knock out Holloway in his first title defense at UFC 308 on Saturday in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates - was receptive to the idea of a rematch with Volkanovski, telling the former champ that if anyone deserved a chance to get the title back, it was him.

UFC CEO Dana White said at the postfight press conference he won't deny Volkanovski that opportunity.

The idea that Volkanovski's long reign warrants an immediate rematch against Topuria is valid. And watching Volkanovski try to regain the belt - just like Holloway did Saturday - would be a cool moment. But that doesn't mean it's the best option. And it's not.

The UFC should pivot and give Diego Lopes the next featherweight title shot instead.

Ranked No. 3 in the division, Lopes was one of 2023's breakout stars and is on the Fighter of the Year short list in 2024. He's won three fights in the last seven months, including a decision over Brian Ortega in September that firmly entrenched him in the title picture. In fact, Lopes weighed in as a main-event backup in Abu Dhabi in case anything happened to Topuria or Holloway at the last minute.

Though Lopes would not be favored to beat Topuria, it's a fresh matchup that is pretty intriguing on paper. Lopes is part of the new generation of featherweights like Topuria and is only getting better. It would be interesting to see how Topuria deals with Lopes' longer reach and if he can close the distance as easily as he has versus everyone else. Plus, Lopes has a background in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and Topuria hasn't fought anyone who took a grappling-heavy approach outside of Bryce Mitchell. It'd be a bit of a new challenge.

If Topuria's decisive knockout at UFC 308 told us anything, it's that there's a good chance he'd do the same thing to Volkanovski - again. At least, no one came out of the event thinking Volkanovski's chances were better than before. The Australian is coming off back-to-back knockout losses and is 1-3 in his last four appearances. He's also 36 years old, while Topuria is 27 and just entering his prime. This just isn't the kind of matchup that favors Volkanovski, especially with how quick Topuria is.

Volkanovski needs to build some momentum and confidence before jumping back into the deep end against Topuria. He should have a bounce-back fight and then pursue the rematch. We don't need a repeat of UFC 298 - at least not right away.

In a perfect world, the UFC would book Volkanovski against Lopes and then have the winner fight Topuria. But that world doesn't exist. The UFC has pay-per-views to fill and can't have Topuria sitting on the sidelines waiting for the ideal challenger to emerge.

So if it comes down to Volkanovski or Lopes for Topuria, it's a no-brainer.