“Who Chickened Out?”- Islam Makhachev Responds to Ilia Topuria’s Ducking Accusations for White House Event
The much-anticipated UFC White House card has finally been announced, and it has elicited a range of mixed reactions from fight fans. In the main event, Ilia Topuria is expected to take on Justin Gaethje for a lightweight title unification bout.
However, many fans were more interested in watching Topuria fight the current welterweight champion, Islam Makhachev. Both are on a similar trajectory, and their intense rivalry has heightened the animosity between them.
Following the announcement, Topuria took to X and accused Makhachev of ducking him and giving excuses such as his injured hand. The ‘El Matador’ mentioned that he wanted to fight the Dagestani at the White House, but now he will have to deal with Justin Gaethje first.
As expected, this didn’t go well with Makhachev, who didn’t waste time before responding to Topuria in a brutal X post. “We both know who chickened out here you can cover your cowardice with nasty tweets, but don’t worry, one day you will get what you asked for! and your fat a** manager don’t have to ask for billions to fight me, we’ll do it for free,” wrote Makhachev via X.
According to UFC CEO Dana White, Makhachev and Topuria were never in conversation for the White House event. Makhachev is currently more focused on defending his welterweight belt against top contenders such as Ian Garry, Michael Morales, etc.
However, many fans believe that Makhachev vs. Topuria is a dream match-up that would eventually happen. Previously, the Georgian-Spanish had also proposed a pound-for-pound belt for both of them to compete.
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UFC veteran predicts Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria dream match-up
Ilia Topuria is undefeated in UFC and is currently on an incredible three-fight knockout streak, beating Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway, and Charles Oliveira. The fighter is well known for his boxing and knockout power, but believes his wrestling is enough to deal with Makhachev.
UFC veteran Jorge Masvidal has trained with Ilia Topuria and is a big fan of both fighters. In a recent interview, the former BMF champion shared his prediction for the much-anticipated bout.
“I could see Islam taking Ilia down and making his day very, very long or Ilia getting in there, using his hands and catching him, because in my book, Ilia is maybe two notches faster than Makhachev, and his power is unreal, incomparable. But Makhachev on the ground doesn’t get tired, can submit you from anywhere,” said Jorge Masvidal via Deatherow MMA.
Makhachev is currently on a 16-fight win streak in UFC and is ready to break Anderson Silva’s previous record. It will be interesting to see when Dagestani finally makes his return inside the UFC Octagon.
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