Islam Makhachev Claps Back at Ilia Topuria: 'We Both Know Who Chickened Out'

The verbal dispute between UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev and Featherweight Champion Ilia Topuria is escalating.

Topuria is slated to headline the upcoming UFC event on June 14 against interim Lightweight Champion Justin Gaethje. Despite this, 'El Matador' openly expressed a strong desire to face Makhachev instead. Topuria believes Makhachev has been deliberately avoiding a fight with him and accused the highly-regarded pound-for-pound fighter of 'ducking' their potential matchup for the event.

Taking to X, Topuria elaborated on his perspective, stating, "Once again Islam comes up with an excuse. This time it’s an injury. I always knew I would be part of the White House event. Even when the UFC told me at one point that they wouldn’t count on me for the event, I knew it was part of the negotiation. When they finally told me I would be on the White House card, they mentioned Islam and I didn’t hesitate for a second to accept the fight. Even though the fight hadn’t been officially confirmed yet, the White House card was going to be announced the next day. And when I woke, I found out that Islam had gotten injured. And then Justin Gaethje appeared. Once again, someone else who will pay for Islam’s escape."

Makhachev swiftly retaliated against 'El Matador,' turning the tables and accusing Topuria of 'chickening out' of their burgeoning rivalry.

In a direct response on X, Makhachev wrote, "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 ass manager don’t have to ask for billions to fight me, we’ll do it for free."

Currently, Topuria holds the No. 2 spot in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings. A potential clash between these two champions would undoubtedly be a blockbuster event, pitting two of the world's elite fighters against each other during the peak of their careers.