Mosvar Evloev has revealed he is open to a fight with either Lerone Murphy or Diego Lopes next.
The #1 ranked UFC 145-pound fighter wants to earn his shot at Alexander Volkanovski and the UFC Featherweight Title, and is willing to go through Murphy or Lopes to get there.
Mosvar Evloev Calls Out Lerone Murphy and Diego Lopes
Mosvar Evloev has taken to social media to make his feelings known about his desire to challenge Alexander Volkanovski for the UFC Featherweight Title.
The #1 ranked featherweight contender boasts an undefeated MMA record of 19-0, which includes nine victories inside the UFC octagon since signing for Dana White’s organisation back in 2019.
Despite being the #1 ranked contender, it looks unlikely that Evloev will be granted a shot at the 145-pound belt next. Instead, he may have to fight at least one more top contender before getting his shot at Volkanovski and the featherweight belt.
This is something Evloev is aware off, which is why he has taken to social media to call out both Lerone Murphy and Diego Lopes.
Murphy is the #4 ranked featherweight in the UFC, with Lopes ranked #2 following his Noche UFC victory over Jean Silva. Despite being higher ranked than both, Evloev looks unlikely to get the next UFC Featherweight Title shot.
Instead, the Russian MMA star is open to match-up’s with both Murphy and Lopes. It looks like one of those fighters will get the shot at Volkanovski, meaning Evloev could have to fight the other featherweight contender.
If this ends up being the case, Evloev will be favourite with UFC betting sites to beat both Murphy and Lopes. He has already defeated Lopes before, hence why he would prefer the fight against Britain’s Murphy.
In recent posts on social media, the 31-year-old revealed that he is open to any fighter at all, which includes a rematch with Lopes or a final eliminator with Murphy:
“Congratulations Diego Lopes, let’s do the rematch or maybe I can fight Lerone Murphy, it doesn’t matter any of these two guys,” Evloev wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Movsar Evloev says he'll go through Lerone Murphy or Diego Lopes to get his shot at Alex Volkanovski pic.twitter.com/mPGITH8c4H
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) September 15, 2025
Will Mosvar Evloev Get The Next UFC Featherweight Title Shot?
Alexander Volkanovski vs Lerone Murphy in the UFC 323 co-main event was seemingly all but confirmed last month, but now that fight looks like it might not happen.
Instead, it looks likely that Diego Lopes will be granted his second UFC Featherweight Title shot after his impressive Noche UFC win over Jean Silva this past weekend.
This means that #1 contender Mosvar Evloev and #4 ranked Murphy will have to bide their time before they are given a shot at the 1245-pound belt. Or perhaps they will be made to fight each other in a final eliminator.
Either way, Evloev is open to any fight with any name. The 31-year-old feels he deserves his shot at the featherweight belt, but is also happy to fight either Lopes or Murphy first if needs must:
“I’m the only guy who can beat Volk now, but if I have to fight Lerone or Diego then I have no problem doing it,” wrote Evloev on social media.
It remains to be seen who Alexander Volkanovski’s next fight is against and just who he will defend his UFC Featherweight Title against.
If it is Murphy as previously rumoured, then a rematch between Evloev and Lopes makes total sense. If not and Lopes gets another shot at ‘The Great’, then Evloev vs Lerone Murphy makes total sense too.
UFC President Dana White may throw a spanner in the works completely and grant the 19-0 Russian his shot straight away. If he did, you couldn’t begrudge him. At the end of the day, he is the #1 ranked contender and has never tasted defeat in MMA.
Time will tell Mosvar Evloev’s next move and whether he fights Murphy, Lopes or perhaps Volkanovski.
