UFC 317 finally has a major event. It's Ilia Topuria vs. Charles Oliveira, that's not what the fans asked for.

How do we feel about this International Battle Week booking? There is also about Islam Makhachev's upgrade to middleweight, which could potentially put a dilemma for some of the sector's top contenders?

advertise

All of this and more in this week’s mailbag. To ask your own question, please call @benfowlkesmma or @benfowlkes.bsky.social.

@kevinseccia: Ben, I love Chucky Olives, he's exciting, but the fight is disappointing, and strangely people pretend not to be, and crazy abuse of Fire Fire Emoji. It's fun, but not the dominant champion versus the dominant champion. They could have all and then blow it up. Am I wrong?

Kevin, you're right. It has nothing to do with this struggle, not about the rampant and candid abuse of fire emojis in our society. (I mean, too many fire emojis can cause Fire Emoji inflation, reducing the value of the fire emojis I left in the comments on Tina Fey’s Instagram page.)

As far as a style showdown goes, there might be an interesting battle between their power peaks or close to two guys, and of course, Ilia Topuria vs. Charles Oliveira is some Fire Fire Emoji material. But the bet isn't there. Topria is the best lightweight in the world before deciding to rise and challenge the best lightweight in the world. But then the best lightweight bolts in the world are the second and second levels, so, as UFC's own rankings, currently, Topuria faces the former champion, which is the third highest lightweight. To make it look more meaningful, we will pull a belt out of the supply closet and say it's the vacant title.

advertise

Again, it was an interesting battle. I suspect this is a great viewing. This does not mean similar meaning to Topuria and Islam Makhachev. We could have had that. We could have it all. It's right there. Makhachev could have been with Topuria and Then Weight gain. But, no, we can’t have good things in this sport. We prefer to complicate any opportunities that they don’t need.

@mmabandwagon: Where is the collective anger over Islam for the middleweight belt? The 170-year-old champion challenger has a large number of champion challengers, and Topuria may be the second time that he has brought out Dagestani. If I were Garry, Brady, or Shavkat, I would be very angry. What is the urge to raise Islam to 170?

I know, I know. This is stupid. Especially because Makhachev and his camp believed that Topuria should not raise weight classes and challenge the championship in his first battle. Obviously, this should be the honor Makhachev reserved.

At least Topuria has actually fought (once) when it was lightweight in UFC. This is more than Makhachev does in the middleweight division. Plus, Topuria vs. Makhachev will be a meeting of great men! Real super battle! A huge battle could have made money and made sense! add!

advertise

Sorry, I need to calm down. It's really frustrating. Yes, middleweight contenders like Shavkat Rakhmonov should definitely be angry about this, because this is basically Makhachev lined up when his own department could still do the job. This is ridiculous. But I think this is your MMA.

@dp819: I agree with you on the Jones Duck Aspinall but not fighting Aspinall, is this really a stain on his career? He just dismantled the best HW ever, but is Tom the pinnacle? There will always be another threat. No one looked at the powerful rat and said, "Yes, but he didn't fight Brandon Moreno."

Whoaaa there. First, did Jon Jones “demolition” the best heavyweight ever? He beat a 42-year-old firefighter. He defeated a man who had not fought for more than three years and had not won the battle for more than four years. I have a lot of respect for everything Stipe Miocic has done in his great career, but Jones' version is not the same person.

Do you know anything else? Jones knows this. He deliberately targeted the version. He could have gained weight and challenged Miocic five to six years ago, when Miocic was still Dude and Jones were making decisions about Thiago Santos and Dominick Reyes. But he didn't. He waited until he could drag out the reduced version of Miocic from semi-retirement because he wanted the name on his resume. So, let's get a clearer look.

advertise

And, I understand what you mean, there is always another challenge. This is true. However, in this case, the challenge also revolves around his waistline with a UFC heavyweight title. And, since Jones didn’t beat the championship, if he was going to retire without facing Tom Aspinole, I don’t think we really can’t say that he was once an undisputed heavyweight champion.

There is only the optics of things. There is Aspinall, waiting for the shot he won, eager to fight and find out who is better. Then there was Jones, counting his trophy and enjoying his own trip, seemingly avoiding purposeful battles after the game to make himself a reasonable one, but not convincing about heavyweight greatness. It was a bad look for him. And if his career ended with that bad look, I don't think people would forget that.

@worldsworthero: What is the MLB/NBA/NFL team for Montana natives? You guys don't have S ***, lol

First of all, how dare you? What we have is the University of Montana Grizzlies University football team. Two national champions. Winning 19 Big Sky Conference Championships, including 12 consecutive conference championships. Plus, they have the best stadiums in all football games, and everyone knows it. Go Griz.

advertise

Secondly, we have several different options when it comes to professional teams. One is to choose a team that is reasonably geographically close, so it is more likely to play games in our area. Popular examples include Seattle and Denver professional teams, but basically never Utah. Another option is to trace some kind of family lineage back to Texas or Boston and take root for a team from there, citing that he was your grandfather’s team as a kid, before he came to the West to escape the dark past.

I think what I like most is when people go with a team that somehow captures their spirit from Montana. For example, I know people from Butte like the Pittsburgh Steelers or the Philadelphia Flyers just because these teams seem to have the Bitman identity. Basically, they'll disappear, geography is damned, I respect it.

@eyeofmihawk: I have two. The first one is that baldness is the best foundation for MMA? Almost all goats are bald. One, Jose Aldo, retired last weekend. (Second) How is his legacy different if the judges give him these careful decisions? Are there many differences or not many?

Wow, I will need more time to deal with theories about the intersection between baldness and greatness. Especially because, as we discovered after retirement, Georges St-Pierre is perfectly capable of growing strong hair. His baldness is an option. Larry David will tell you that this doesn't make you part of the bald community.

advertise

As for Jose Aldo, are there really many careful decisions that violated his? Like in the kind that can meaningfully change his position in the sport? It could be Mario Bautista's battle, definitely Marlon Moraes's battle. But he won the title of Moraes' decision to lose, and Bautista's battle is essentially in the post-seat scene of his otherwise epic career.

I mean, Aldo's career was great, and even without giving him an extra win, the judge had been borne by the loss. What I always want to know is what if he had more patience with Conor McGregor? Now, there is a possibility that some different career trajectories have changed and differently with butterflies' wings.

@jmprobus: Is Weili vs Valentina on the horizon? What is the component of that potential showdown that you find most interesting?

better. Valentina Shevchenko really has nothing else to do with this, and anyone will be really excited. Even her victory over Manon Fiorot at UFC 315 on Saturday, that never even happened by Sunday morning. Fans have zero interest.

What fascinated me about the battle with Zhang Weili is how Zhang's speed matches the size and strength of Shevchenko. We know Shevchenko is able to bully smaller fighters, especially when she wrestles on the verge of her wrestling. But we also know she is starting to slow down as she gets older, and Zhang seems to be getting better anywhere. Of course, this is the next struggle.