Diego Lopes finds himself in a prime position thanks to Ilia Topuria’s choice to step up to the lightweight division. Now, Lopes is set to take on Alexander Volkanovski for the vacant featherweight belt at UFC 314 on April 12 in Miami. The headliner of the event is confident that Topuria has what it takes to make waves at 155 pounds.

Topuria isn’t a stranger to the lightweight class. Back in March 2022, he made a statement by knocking out Jai Herbert with a devastating right hook. Before that fight, the Georgian-Spanish fighter had already built a 3-0 record in the UFC. Since then, he’s rattled off four consecutive wins, three by finish, including historic stoppages of Max Holloway and Volkanovski.

“He’s a guy that can achieve great things in that division,” Lopes told MMA Fighting about Topuria’s lightweight venture. “He’s very athletic and quite young, too. I think he’s 27, 28, so I think he has time to do a great run up a division.”

Should Topuria’s lightweight journey hit a rough patch and he decides to drop back down to featherweight, Lopes is ready to meet him head-on. “If he comes back, I hope to be the champion so I can fight him,” Lopes laughed.

For now, Lopes is laser-focused on defeating Volkanovski to seize the 145-pound title. He’s riding a five-fight win streak in the UFC, with three finishes and decision victories over Brian Ortega and Dan Ige. The 30-year-old Brazilian, who once competed at bantamweight, isn’t ruling out future moves across weight classes either.

“I’ve talked to my nutritionist and he’s said to me, ‘You can fight in any weight class you want,’” Lopes said. “[He said] ‘You have the weight to fight at 135, you have the weight to fight at 145, and you can go up a little bit, have the body structure and height to fight at 155 as well.’ But for now my focus is this division, and then we’ll see what the future holds for us. I’m focused on the division now. Maybe in the future I can go up, no problem, and put on good fights at 155.”

Lopes’ versatility and ambition could make him a force to be reckoned with, but his immediate sights are set on capturing featherweight gold.