Islam Makhachev asserts that he was ready to face Ilia Topuria on June 14 at the White House. The lightweight champion states he immediately accepted the proposed superfight, but other factors led to its cancellation, for which he claims no responsibility.
Ilia Topuria, the undisputed lightweight champion, is now scheduled to face interim 155-pound titleholder Justin Gaethje in the main event of UFC Freedom 250.
Prior to this, various explanations for why the highly anticipated bout between the two UFC champions did not come to fruition were circulated by Ilia Topuria, his manager, and Islam Makhachevโs manager, Ali Abdelaziz. Makhachev has now presented his account of the events.
Islam Makhachev Explains True Reason Behind Canceled White House Fight with Ilia Topuria
In a recent interview with Red Corner MMA, the Russian fighter refuted reports from Dana White and Topuria himself that a hand injury prevented him from accepting a fight against “El Matador” on June 14. Makhachev stated that his hand was perfectly fine.
Makhachev further claimed to possess text messages as proof of his injury-free status and dismissed the prevailing false narratives. The 34-year-old fighter also suggested that Topuriaโs excessive financial demands were a likely reason for the UFC’s decision to cancel the fight.
โI donโt have any injuriesโฆ I can show you the chats with my manager. He called me: โThe White House event, a fight against Topuriaโ. And I said: โLetโs goโ, right away. But then the next day [Ali] called me and said itโs cancelled. He told me that [Topuria] asked for some insane money, and that was it. [Ilia] claims that I pulled out because of the hand injury. It had nothing to do with the hand. I said โyesโ right away, without asking for more money and stuff like that.โ
There are now rumors that Islam Makhachev will make his first defense of his welterweight title in August, with indications pointing towards a fight against Ian Machado Garry.
Meanwhile, Topuria remains focused on Makhachev. Following his lightweight title unification bout on June 14, “El Matador” intends to move up in weight to challenge and defeat the welterweight champion and pound-for-pound king.
