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UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje and Ilia Topuria continue to stoke the flames of a potential title rematch.
Tensions between UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje and former titleholder Ilia Topuria are ramping up ahead of a potential immediate rematch.
Gaethje handed Topuria the first loss of his career earlier this year at UFC Freedom 250. In an instant classic, Gaethje defeated Topuria by TKO (corner stoppage) to win the undisputed championship for the first time in his legendary tenure.
Despite Topuria’s team recently shutting down imminent return rumors, the former lightweight champ recently took to social media to announce he’s been medically cleared to fight. Topuria suffered two broken orbitals in the loss to Gaethje, and a timeline for his comeback seemed uncertain.
Now, Topuria could potentially return by year’s end, and his earlier cordiality with Gaethje has seemed to dissipate. Topuria recently accused Gaethje of tampering with his gloves at UFC Freedom 250 in an X-rated social media rant.
Justin Gaethje slams Ilia Topuria’s glove tampering allegations
In a recent tweet, Gaethje responded to Topuria’s scathing allegations.
“Ilia, 94 days and the best you could come up with is a lame excuse,” Gaethje said.
“As terrible as your last performance. Do better kid.”
UFC lightweight contenders Arman Tsarukyan and Mauricio Ruffy will fight for a potential No. 1 contender spot this weekend at UFC Freedom 250. If Gaethje postpones his teased retirement, he’ll likely fight the Tsarukyan vs. Ruffy winner for his first title defense.
But UFC CEO Dana White recently admitted that the Gaethje vs. Topuria rematch is also possible for the next lightweight title fight. A grudge match between Topuria and rising star Paddy Pimblett has also been discussed.
In either case, tensions are ramping up between Topuria and Gaethje, and there remains no evidence of wrongdoing by Gaethje or his team at UFC Freedom 250. But that hasn’t stopped things from getting hostile as rematch talks continue.
Would you want to see Justin Gaethje vs. Ilia Topuria 2 next? Share your thoughts in the comments!
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