Ilia Topuria reignited his feud with Justin Gaethje by accusing him of tampering with his gloves during their UFC White House fight. The former lightweight champion’s serious allegations sparked a heated back-and-forth with his rival on social media. However, Dana White doesn’t seem remotely affected by it.

During the Power Slap 23 event, White went live with Nina Drama on Kick, where she asked him about Topuria’s surprising remarks on Gaethje. In response, the UFC CEO made it clear that he is not aware of the ongoing beef and doesn’t particularly care about it.

“No. I’m gonna say, ‘I missed all the good stuff, huh?’ I don’t go on social media as much as people think I do,” White said. “I try to stay away from the fight stuff because most of it’s bulls—t. Social media is full of s—t. It’s a crazy place.”

Ilia Topuria’s post accusing Justin Gaethje of cheating during their UFC White House clash on June 14 currently stands at 12 million views on X. At present, it has become one of the biggest talking points in the MMA world. So, it’s highly surprising that Dana White is not actually aware of two of his marquee fighters going head-to-head on social media. However, what’s not surprising is White’s lack of interest in fighters trading words online. 

Most notably, Dana White showed zero interest in addressing the social media chatter when Jon Jones and Tom Aspinall were heavily beefing online last year ahead of their ultimately scrapped heavyweight championship fight.

“Unless we come out and say something, it’s all bulls—t,” White said. “I just don’t get sucked into that stuff anymore. I don’t even care.”

To be fair, it’s understandable why Dana White doesn’t want to intervene when two fighters are beefing with each other. When fighters trade barbs, it can add to the promotion of a potential fight. Hence, a shrewd promoter like the UFC head honcho refrains from sharing his thoughts, which could affect what the fighters want to express, whether its right or wrong.  

In that case, ‘El Matador’ accusing Justin Gaethje of cheating could just be his approach to securing a rematch.

This isn’t the first time Topuria has accused other fighters of cheating. Previously, the former two-division champion called some Dagestani fighters “super cheaters” during the UFC 308 media day, while excluding Khabib Nurmagomedov from his criticism. The Spaniard was taking a dig at what he described as the history of alleged steroid use among some fighters from the region.

Regardless of the veracity of his claim, Ilia Topuria has finally gone through his final medical checks and has been cleared to fight. His coach, Jesus Gallo, said they are eyeing a return in February next year. So, there’s a chance that White is allowing him to build up the fight if they’re actually planning to hold a rematch, which he has already expressed interest in conducting.

Following Topuria’s serious allegations, Justin Gaethje also fired back at his adversary, stating that he’s simply making excuses after getting beaten at UFC White House.

“94 days and the best you could come up with is a lame excuse,” Gaethje wrote on X. “As terrible as your last performance. Do better kid.” 

But it’s not only Dana White or Justin Gaethje who has reacted to Ilia Topuria’s accusations. Even a revered UFC commentator shared his thoughts about the whole situation.

Jon Anik reacts to Ilia Topuria alleging Justin Gaethje of glove tampering

While Dana White was busy attending the Power Slap event, Jon Anik took his place as the host of the UFC 331 pre-fight press conference. During the presser, a reporter asked Anik about Topuria’s recent allegations against Justin Gaethje, to which the UFC play-by-play commentator had an interesting answer.

Jon Anik respectfully dismissed Topuria’s comments, saying that Gaethje’s genetics and bone density play a big role in making his punches so excruciating. Plus, he believes the Georgian-Spaniard made those comments in an attempt to secure a rematch with the man who handed him the first defeat of his career.

“Justin Gaethje has tremendous genetics,” Jon Anik said. “Even after that win over Ilia Topuria, he acknowledged his parents’ bone density. I think anybody who has shaken Justin Gaethje’s hands knows that that guy’s got some natural gifts, and he used them to the best of his ability on June 14th.

“Not sure if Topuria is maybe angling for a rematch or what, but I think those words were probably a little bit forgettable, and I probably think he would recognize that as well.”

Well, before Anik reacted to Topuria’s tirade against Justin Gaethje, he had already speculated that the promotion was discussing a rematch between them. On the Anik & Florian Podcast with his twin brother Jason Anik, the longtime UFC commentator said “conversations” had been happening within the UFC about a potential rematch. However, he also stated that Paddy Pimblett remains an option.

For that reason, Anik believes Ilia Topuria’s latest accusations are nothing but an attempt to secure his next title shot. That said, whether his strategy works for him or not remains to be seen.