Ilia Topuria may not have a confirmed next opponent yet, but several big names are being floated as potential challengers. Justin Gaethje, Arman Tsarukyan, and Paddy Pimblett are among the frontrunners the UFC is considering for the lightweight champion’s return to the Octagon. While only time will tell who gets the official call, Topuria has recently been making headlines for reasons outside the cage—his rumored split from wife, Giorgina Uzcategui Badell.

In October 2025, fans began speculating about trouble in paradise after noticing that Topuria and Badell had unfollowed each other on Instagram, deleted most of the images of them together, and removed tags linking their profiles. Rumors of a breakup—and even alleged infidelity—quickly spread online. The couple, who share two children, has yet to address the speculation publicly. However, Topuria has now made a surprising confession.

Ilia Topuria reveals his problem

Earlier today on Instagram, ‘El Matador’ shared a series of pictures and videos, accompanied by a quote from actor Steve Maraboli. “Those who have the ability to be grateful are the ones who have the ability to achieve greatness,” Topuria wrote. The first few images captured glimpses of his daily life, training sessions, and travels. However, the final photo revealed something far more personal—a confession Topuria may have been holding onto for some time.

“My problem was I wanted to take people with me to the top who didn’t even want to see me at the top,” he had written on a piece of paper. While there’s no direct indication that the message was directed toward his wife, its timing coincided closely with the reports of a split. Still, much like Khabib Nurmagomedov channeled his grief after his father’s death into motivation for his final fight at UFC 254 against Justin Gaethje, Topuria could use his rumored split as fuel to dominate his next opponent.

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Although nothing is confirmed yet, reports suggest Ilia Topuria might return on the first UFC card of 2026, set to air on Paramount in January under UFC’s historic $7.7 billion deal with the media house. Regardless of when he fights—whether in January or at the White House Card in June—fans believe Topuria’s rumored split from his wife has only intensified his focus. Many are already praying for whoever ends up standing across from him next.

Topuria’s villain arc begins, says fan

Ilia Topuria is undoubtedly one of the biggest stars in the UFC, and his emotional confession quickly drew a flood of reactions online. Among the many comments, one fan summed up the general sentiment perfectly. “Pray for his next opponent,” the user wrote. It would be hilarious but disappointing if Topuria ends up losing.

Meanwhile, this user felt that this was the beginning of something dark. “Bro’s villain arc begins now,” the user remarked. But in every fight, each opponent is the hero of their own story, so Topuria has been the villain of each one of his opponents. 

Someone else compared Topuria’s situation with Khabib Nurmagomedov. “First dead father, Khabib. Now, heartbroken Ilia. RIP Justin Gaethje, [You] had a good run in your career,” the user wrote. However, there’s no confirmation on who Topuria will be fighting next. 

The next user had the same idea. “Heartbroken Topuria gonna be a bad man,” the user wrote. If not anything else, Topuria’s rumored split would hype up his next fight even more. 

Another user was thinking about something far in the future. “Ilia [is going to] become triple champ all bc he got his heart broken,” the user commented. Ilia Topuria has claimed he would be willing to fight Islam Makhachev if the latter beats Jack Della Maddalena.

It appears Topuria’s alleged split from his wife has done wonders for the excitement for his next fight. But the question is, who will he face next? Will it be Gaethje, as some fans think?