“The rumors of a bout with [Ilia Topuria] are false. I am in preliminary agreements with the Ambani family to face Logan Paul in a boxing exhibition in India. I have agreed.” This X post from Conor McGregor ignited last year’s buzz about a potential showdown with Logan Paul. Reports soon followed of a staggering $250 million payout, with Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium floated as the venue for late 2025. But by January, doubts about the matchup had begun to sap the initial excitement.

The drama peaked when Conor McGregor crossed paths with Logan Paul and Jake Paul, threatening to slap them — and KSI — while referencing the stalled fight. He later criticized Logan for staying silent, claiming that if Paul had pushed for it, the bout might have happened. Ultimately, McGregor confirmed the UFC blocked the fight, as he remains under contract with the promotion. Several months after the fight died, Paul recently appeared in his Impaulsive podcast to accuse journalist Ariel Helwani of leaking details about the negotiations.

As the two spoke on Paul’s podcast, Helwani insisted he would never reveal details unless specifically asked to share them — boasting that anything told to him off the record stays off the record. However, Logan Paul interrupted, stating, “I think you did on one of them.” Bamboozled, Helwani shot back, “What? F–k out of here. Never in my life. I never will.” This prompted Logan to reveal the reason behind his accusation. 

“You did the Conor thing.” When asked to elaborate, Logan explained, “When it was rumored that I was fighting McGregor. You DM me and [asked], ‘Is it true?’ And I said, ‘At the moment, no.’ I didn’t say this is proprietary information, and I’d like to keep this rumor going for clout. But maybe I should have. You went right on your show and said they don’t have anything in place.” Helwani quickly countered. 

“This is inaccurate. I actually went on my show and said, ‘There was something. There were discussions,’” adding that he already knew about Ambani’s involvement. Paul chimed in, trying to deflect, “Well, there were discussions in place. I just don’t know if I was ready for that information to break.” Helwani defended himself again, noting, “I didn’t break anything,” stressing that when someone tells him something, he assumes it’s off the record.

The two went back and forth for a while longer, trading blame—until the conversation took a turn toward social media.

Ariel Helwani doubles down after podcast with Logan Paul

After the podcast aired on YouTube and other platforms, a clip of this segment was shared on X by Impaulsive with the caption, “Logan Paul VS Conor McGregor was LEAKED by Ariel Helwani.” Even though Helwani had clarified what had actually happened, Impaulsive’s move to share the clip on X didn’t seem to have sat well with the MMA journalist. 

“Yeah, this never happened,” Helwani responded to the X post seriously, doubling down on his position on the matter. “In fact, the EXACT opposite [of] what he said happened actually happened. I take this very seriously.” Helwani also seems to have evidence to prove his claims, as he warned of leaking their DMs. “Should I post the DM [Logan Paul] or …?” he asked. 

The Cleveland-born boxer/WWE star hasn’t commented on the matter further, as the conclusion to this debate hangs in the balance. Whether any legal consequences arise from this interaction is yet to be seen, but Helwani appears to be taking it very seriously. Who do you think is on the right?