Remember the fiery altercation between Ilia Topuria and Paddy Pimblett back in 2022? It all started during UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Aspinall, where the bombastic duo shared the card. Tensions flared at the pre-fight press conference, but things truly boiled over at the fighter hotel. The Liverpudlian reportedly hurled a bottle of sanitizer at Topuria, prompting ‘El Matador’ to swing back before security stepped in to break it up.

Three years later, the former featherweight champion is now eyeing lightweight gold against Charles Oliveira. Still, the undefeated Spaniard hasn’t missed the chance to reignite the rivalry, launching fresh verbal shots at the Brit. But before that, let’s refresh our memories! Pimblett and Topuria have a history together that dates back to 2021. It all began when the Englishman made a post on X referencing the 2008 Russo-Georgian war in an offensive manner.

This prompted Topuria, who is of Georgian descent, to call him out and warn him about his future. A year after their online scuffle, the ‘Fighter Hotel’ incident happened. For years, the two remained silent as they competed in different weight classes. However, since Topuria’s move to the lightweight division, Pimblett has repeatedly called out the former featherweight champion, challenging him to a fight.

Fairly recently, when asked about Topuria’s title fight against Oliveira at UFC 317, Pimblett — who is also undefeated in the UFC — stated that if Topuria emerges victorious, it will be a positive milestone in his career, “It’d be far better for my career if Ilia wins because I’d, more than likely, be his first title defense,” said Pimblett in his conversation with TNT sports.

In a recent press conference, a local Spanish reporter, Irati Prat, asked the former featherweight champion about his back-and-forth with Paddy Pimblett. In response, ‘El Matador’ subtly asserted that Paddy Pimblett now knows where to dig if he’s looking for gold.“He knows where the money is now. He’s gotta pay for the parties he throws for himself.”

Pimblett has been vocal about fighting Topuria for quite some time now. After his dominant endeavor against Michael Chandler at UFC 314, the Briton was more enthusiastic than ever as he took the mic at the post-fight presser to issue a verbal attack on Topuria. He said, “What I’ve just done to Chandler—I have the blueprint to beat him. Topuria is even more of a midget than Chandler. I’ll do the exact same things to him, only quicker than I did to Chandler.” 

The Spanish-Georgian never responded to this comment. However, ‘El Matador’ might consider facing Pimblett after his UFC 317 bout against Charles Oliveira. But wait, there’s still an avenue to witness an Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria superfight right if ‘El Matador’ wins at UFC 317 and Makhachev wins against Jack Della Maddalena? Well, that’s the catch: the Dagestani might not get an immediate title shot.

“Can get in line,” says Ilia Topuria on Islam Makhachev’s immediate title shot at 155lbs

“Difference between me and you, that I cleaned the top list in my division, moved to the next, but you ran away from two contenders who had consecutive 5-9 wins in the FW division. You are nobody in the LW division, just a big mouth from Spain with a nice haircut. Go get one W, and we can talk, boy,” wrote Islam Makhachev on his X handle after Ilia Topuria accused the soon-to-be-former lightweight champion of running away from him.

Topuria’s response? At the same press conference, when a reporter asked the former featherweight champion about Makhachev, ‘El Matador’ took a cheeky dig at the Dagestani while making it clear that he would not receive an immediate title shot. “You know, from the beginning, he wanted to give that impression that he had some sort of decision. He also said about a week ago, ‘My move to welterweight isn’t going to matter because I’m not planning on vacating my title.’ You remember that, right?” Topuria said.

He further added, “And I had said before that I didn’t move up to lightweight to ask anyone for anything, and that I was the one in charge. So, who got their way? Who did what they said? As always, him to me. So after this fight, when I have the belt, he can get in line, which is a long one. And someone’s eyes will be shining.”

Ilia Topuria is certain that he is not in the mood to grant an immediate title shot to the Dagestani. This might be a revenge tactic, as when he moved up to the lightweight division, Team Khabib halted the immediate remedy, stating that Topuria would have to prove his mettle before earning a title shot.

Given that, the UFC still might push for their super fight if they both secure titles in their respective new divisions. What are your thoughts on Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria? Who do you think will emerge victorious in their super fight? State your opinion in the comments below.