After trading some verbal barbs at the UFC Freedom 250 press conference, Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje became involved in a physical confrontation afterwards.
As the two men came together on stage for photos Topuria told him not to come any closer.
“Are you going to hit me?” asked Gaethje.
Topuria said that he was.
“Okay, do it. I am close enough right now,” answered Gaethje.
Dana White instructed Topuria not to do it.
Topuria shoved Gaethje. Dana White had to separate the two fighters. Gaethje appeared to just laugh it off.
“I don’t want to hurt you. I warned you,” said Topuria adding something about not having time to punch him in the face.
“You want to act like a f—–g animal? Like an emotional little animal?” he shouted but didn’t respond in kind.
Topuria then grabbed the undisputed UFC Lightweight Championship and the interim UFC Lightweight Championship belts holding them high.
“It’s mine boy. It looks much better on me,” Topuria said of Gaethje’s interim UFC Lightweight Championship belt.
Topuira and Gaethje will meet in a UFC Lightweight Championship unification match in the main event at UFC Freedom 250, this Sunday.
The lineup for the card is as follows:
Featherweight: Diego Lopes vs. Steve Garcia
Middleweight: Bo Nickal vs. Kyle Daukaus
Lightweight: Mauricio Ruffy vs. Michael Chandler
Heavyweight: Josh Hokit vs. Derrick Lewis
Bantamweight: Sean O’Malley vs. Aiemann Zahabi
Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship: Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane
UFC Lightweight Championship: Ilia Topuira vs. Justin Gaethje
The event is available on Paramount+.
