Dana White Open to Ilia Topuria and Paddy Pimblett Coaching 'The Ultimate Fighter'
UFC President Dana White has indicated he is receptive to the concept of Ilia Topuria and Paddy Pimblett coaching opposing teams on "The Ultimate Fighter."
Topuria and Pimblett have a history of animosity, stemming from an incident in 2022. Pimblett recently suggested that he and Topuria should both be featured on "The Ultimate Fighter" before eventually facing each other in a fight.
"I have no fight booked at the minute, but I would love to fight Ilia Topuria," Pimblett stated. "I’ll beat him that bad that I’d send him back down to Featherweight. I think me and Ilia Topuria would be a brilliant season of The Ultimate Fighter because I’d get under his skin so much, that when we come into the fight, I’d beat him just as fast as McGregor beat Aldo. 'The Ultimate Fighter' would be a very entertaining six weeks to say the least if it was me and him."
When questioned about this possibility at the UFC 332 post-fight press conference, White shared his positive initial reaction but did not offer a firm commitment. "I mean, I love the idea of that," White commented. "But a lot of things determine how things play out. Not just for TUF, but for certain fights and title fights, we’ll see how the timing works out."
Topuria's last bout was in June, where he lost the UFC lightweight title to Justin Gaethje. This marked his first professional MMA defeat, and he was unable to continue after the third round. While Topuria's next opponent has not been confirmed, many believe resolving his rivalry with Pimblett would be a strategic move for the UFC matchmakers.
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