Ilia Topuria and Paddy Pimblett get into verbal war at UFC Qatar
There is still bad blood brewing between undisputed UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria and lightweight contender Paddy Pimblett, as they cross paths in Qatar. With their existing feud in past years, their brief conversation escalated as they both hurled insults at each other ahead of a potential matchup.
In the prelims of UFC Fight Night Qatar, English prospects Shem Rock and Luke Riley will be making their UFC debut. As both are teammates of Pimblett fighting out of Next Generation MMA, “Paddy The Baddy” will be cornering them throughout their two bouts.
The reigning lightweight champion will also be present as he corners his older brother, Aleksandre Topuria, preparing him to face fellow Bantamweight contender Bekzat Almakhan.
“What’s up bro?” Topuria exclaimed at Pimblett as he made his way towards the entrance with Aleksandre. “What’s happening? You all right?” Pimblett fired back. What started as a seemingly friendly greeting between the pair escalated into verbal insults. Topuria then started cursing at Pimblett calling him a “p*ssy”, while met with a response by Pimblett saying, “Come on chorizo, calm down.”
How the history started between them
The history between both fighters started back in 2022, as they engaged in a physical altercation leading up to UFC London . The event saw Pimblett throwing a bottle of hand sanitizer at Topuria, starting a new nickname for the Spanish-Georgian as “Hand Sanitizer Boy.”
Fast forward to 2025, Topuria has now become the new lightweight king with a vicious knockout over Charles Oliveira in June. The aftermath showcase current #5 ranked Pimblett walked into the octagon for a face-to-face, building up a showdown for future lightweight contention.
This also sparked rumours that Topuria and Pimblett might clash in a blockbuster main event in 2026, as part of the UFC’s new broadcast collaboration with Paramount.. As seen on his social media and YouTube, Pimblett has expressed vocally he wants Topuria next for the lightweight strap, but the timeline remains unknown whether the two can finally settle their feud in the octagon.
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