Ilia Topuria finally realized his UFC dream after becoming the second fighter to win both the featherweight and the lightweight titles in promotion history. Besides the title, the Georgian-Spaniard also went home with a hefty paycheck after knocking out Charles Oliveira at UFC 317. However, the focus quickly shifted from his championship win to a social media post from Conor McGregor.

Conor McGregor, who was the first person to win two divisional titles in the UFC, shared a screenshot of Ilia Topuria’s DM from almost 9 years ago. The DM came in on the day of ‘The Notorious’ double championship win, but fans are debating its originality. So is it fake? Well, it appears to be quite genuine. Let’s take a look at that front.

All we know about Conor McGregor leaking Ilia Topuria’s DM

Conor McGregor seemed very pleased with Ilia Topuria’s performance against Charles Oliveira, sharing a reaction to it before briefly deleting it. “Congrats on winning my old titles, illia… 3 ko’s back to back is very good. No one can deny the knockout. I like [Topuria],” he wrote on social media. It was then that he shared a screenshot of a message for Topuria after his win over Eddie Alvarez.

‘El Matador’ was seen saying, “Congratulations [on winning two titles]. I’m gonna be you someday.” Well, the 28-year-old did it, and he got lauded for it by Conor McGregor, who claimed, “Fair play, son.” Well, some fans may believe that ‘The Notorious’ was doing this just to gain some attention, but as far as the post is concerned, it seems genuine and not fake.

Moreover, there is no evidence to suggest that it was a prank or a fake post from Conor McGregor, which brings us to Ilia Topuria. The Georgian-Spaniard has chosen to remain silent on this situation, which has led to a major debate among fans as well. So, let’s take a look at that front.

Topuria remains silent on the leaked DM

Ilia Topuria usually responds to other fighters’ posts about him on social media or on any other platform. He has clashed with Conor McGregor on many occasions, with him calling the Irishman a “fake fighter” in one instance. However, in the wake of his lightweight championship win and KO of Charles Oliveira, ‘El Matador’ has chosen not to respond to McGregor’s DM leak on social media.

While this doesn’t necessarily mean Conor McGregor is telling the truth, there is no way of verifying it from any of Ilia Topuria’s archived posts that it isn’t. Besides, we’ve seen multiple instances of Topuria allegedly copying McGregor’s antics. From stealing the title during press conferences to inking a similar tattoo on his chest, there are a lot of indications of the fact that ‘El Matador’ is a fan of the Irishman. All the signs point towards the fact that the DM could very well be true.

One probable reason the new lightweight champion doesn’t want to talk about the DM exposure is that he wants to wait till the time is right for him to do so. Till then, we can only guess if this is true or not. Topuria’s lack of speech could be a strategy. He is now the number one fighter in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings, having just become the tenth two-division champion. This P4P top spot could change the story: instead of tweeting back, he might let his dominance speak for itself.

At the same time, people are comparing on X and TikTok, calling Topuria “Conor 2.0” and being amazed by his 17-0 record and back-to-back KOs, which are similar to McGregor’s prime.

At the moment, it looks like Conor McGregor is telling the truth, but we’ll have to wait and see what Ilia Topuria has to say next. What do you think? Please tell us in the comments below.