After the unfortunate rain delay, the UFC Freedom 250 pre-fight press conference got underway in full swing, with all the marquee fighters present at the prestigious Lincoln Memorial. For the most part, the fighters kept their trash talk professional. However, Josh Hokit turned things personal with Ilia Topuria moments after apologizing to him.

At the presser, a reporter asked Hokit for his thoughts on facing Derrick Lewis. In response, adopting his hyper-submissive shy persona of Josh Hokit, the undefeated heavyweight prospect claimed he was going to put Lewis to “sleep.” But then he surprisingly proceeded to apologize to Ilia Topuria, Alex Pereira, and the UFC for ruining the previous press conference in May with his antics.

“Is this thing on?” Hokit said. “‘The Incredible Hok’ says he’s going to put Derrick to sleep, like Sleepy Joe. But I like Derrick Lewis. I just want to apologize for ruining the press conference last time. I like Topuria too. I like Pereira. Those are my favorite fighters. So, I just want to apologize for all of that. Yeah, I’m nervous right now. It’s just regular Josh today. Thank you, guys. Thanks for having me, Dana. I’m trying to keep ‘The Incredible Hok’ from coming out, so I’m doing my best.”

The sincerity of the apology was immediately in question given the nature of the exaggerated characters the heavyweight switches between. One is that of a shy, nervous Josh Hokit, while the other is that of a verbose, bashful and foul-mouthed ‘The Incredible Hok.’ It’s the kind of WWE-inspired heel character that is designed to catch more eyeballs by stirring controversy. And that’s exactly what he did at the last presser, and he did the same this time as well.

About 10-12 minutes after the apparent apology, while Justin Gaethje was speaking about his title fight with Ilia Topuria, the 28-year-old stepped in once again.

“Can I interject, please?” Hokit said. “I think Topuria is so mad because he’s so short he can’t see himself in the bathroom mirror. And he married a stripper from Miami. I’m sorry… ‘The Incredible Hok,’ he just be getting me in trouble. I’m sorry Topuria, I’m a real big fan. You’re still my favorite. You have a tough task ahead of you. Gaethje is real hungry, and he’s American.”

The UFC lightweight champion, though, did not respond verbally. However, the anger and frustration on his face were visible. It was the second time Hokit had referenced Topuria’s ex-wife, Giorgina Uzcategui, in a press conference setting.

Even during their press conference in May, the heavyweight star mentioned the Georgian-Spaniard’s ex-wife being from Miami and that he shouldn’t have married her as a result. Topuria had thrown a bottle of water at Hokit right before his remark, which likely prompted the 9-0 heavyweight to take a dig at his marriage.

Considering the painful nature of his divorce and the ensuing custody battle over their child that began late last year and culminated in February this year, it’s understandable why Topuria would be hurt over the remarks. It might also be why Hokit decided to drag in that particularly difficult period of his life in an effort to get under the lightweight champion’s skin.

Now, it’s not only Josh Hokit who has dragged in Ilia Topuria’s ex-wife Giorgina Uzcategui to make things personal. Even the lightweight champion’s opponent did the same a few days ago.  

Justin Gaethje lands a divorce jab against Ilia Topuria ahead of UFC White House fight

Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje’s beef remained mostly cold ahead of the UFC Freedom 250 main event. However, the situation turned personal two weeks ago when the two-time interim lightweight champion landed a verbal jab at the Georgian-Spaniard’s controversial divorce. Speaking to Fox Sports Australia, Gaethje stated that he found him annoying and that he would have left him too. 

“All that guy is a gimmick,” Justin Gaethje said. “He calls himself the king. He thinks he’s a God. What an annoying little b–tard. I couldn’t imagine being in a room with him for 30 minutes, listening to him talk about himself.“And I can say this: I would leave him. That’s all I’m saying. I would leave him. No way I would put up with his s—.”  

Following this, Topuria also responded to Gaethje on social media, letting him know that he had “crossed a line” with his recent comments. The lightweight champion also advised his opponent to be “better” in the way he creates animosity. Since then, every interaction between the two has been heated. Topuria even shoved Gaethje during their faceoff after the press conference at the Lincoln Memorial today. 

With personal attacks now coming from both Hokit and Gaethje, Topuria heads into June 14th with additional motivation beyond the title. Whether that emotional charge helps or complicates his performance against one of the most dangerous fighters in the lightweight division is the question that gets answered on Sunday.