Given his outstanding level of self-confidence and status as an undefeated UFC champion, it’s no surprise that Ilia Topuria is one of the more outspoken fighters on the entire roster and is never too far away from the headlines.
Yet the Spanish-Georgian sensation might have taken things a bit too far this week as he stirred up some drama with undefeated Bellator lightweight champion, Usman Nurmagomedov.
This led to a rageful back and forth with several of the Russian’s teammates and even prompted UFC champion Belal Muhammad to warn that ‘El Matador’ was at risk of getting into a street fight with the Dagestanis.
Ilia Topuria accuses Nurmagomedov of PED use after Makhachev callout
Earlier in the week, Ilia Topuria teased on an Instagram livestream that he’d be willing to fight Islam Makhachev for the UFC lightweight title because if they fought in the streets, he’d have to pay for his medical bills.
Whilst Makhachev didn’t respond directly, undefeated Bellator fighter Usman Nurmagomedov would take issue with the callout, asking “When did you ever fight on the streets, European boy?”
This is where the story took a turn, with Ilia Topuria questioning: “It has been a long time, to be honest. How are you doing with drugs? Are you still on steroids” – Usman Nurmagomedov popped for a banned substance after his grand prix semi-final in 2023 and was suspended for six months, albeit labeled as an accidental consumption by the CSAC.
Understandably, such comments wouldn’t sit well with other members of the Nurmagomedov-Makhachev team, with 15-2 flyweight prospect Tagir Ulanbekov sending a stern warning to the featherweight champion.
“Ilia, I advise you to put aside your dividends and find a good dentist [as] your dental structure will be affected at the first meeting.”
17-4-1 welterweight Abubakar Nurmagomedov would also chime into the debate, writing “Iliya Topuria, why do you need all this? Fly to me, let’s rest on the shores of the Indian ocean.”
Yet the most ominous warning of all came from the current welterweight champion Belal Muhammad, who stated with clear intention that Topuria is playing with fire.
UFC champ warns Ilia Topuria he’s at risk of a ‘street fight’ vs Makhachev
“Be careful what you wish for,” Muhammad warned in a recent interview with Helen Yee, with the 170lb champion explaining how if there’s ever a group of athletes you don’t want to antagonize into a street fight, it’s the Makhachev-Nurmagomedov team.
“If you’re Ilia, you got a lot of guys in your division you still have to fight and Ilia’s getting to the point where you’re undefeated and getting a lot of hype, so now you’re starting to callout [champions] and play that game of trying to be the next [Conor] McGregor.
“But you don’t want to mess with Islam because like they said, it’s different there – if you want to street fight, they’ll street fight you.”
As pointed out by the UFC welterweight champion, “Islam doesn’t care about ‘oh, let’s get paid for it’ [because] if he sees you disrespect him, he’s going to show you what disrespect means from Dagestan.”
Luckily, it won’t be long before we see Ilia Topuria returning to the octagon, with the featherweight title on the line in the main event of UFC 308 against fan favorite Max Holloway – scheduled for October 26 in Abu Dhabi.
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