Ilia Topuria Shoves Justin Gaethje at UFC Press Conference, Tensions Rise Before Fight
The simmering bad blood between Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje finally boiled over on Friday during the pre-fight faceoff for the historic UFC Freedom 250 card, when the lightweight champion Topuria shoved interim titleholder Gaethje just seconds after they faced off.
The brief scuffle occurred at the UFC pre-fight press conference on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. UFC CEO Dana White was forced to quickly step in between the two fighters to prevent the situation from escalating further.
Watch a video clip of the incident below (via Sports Illustrated on YouTube):
https://youtube.com/shorts/aKLNHOoMXwQ?si=XIkqlXqscA4INQca
Gaethje Berates Topuria for ‘Animal' Behavior on Stage
The shove from Topuria came just two days before he and Gaethje headline the first-ever UFC event on the White House lawn.
After the shove, Gaethje kept his composure and immediately verbally berated his younger opponent.
"You want to act like a f*cking animal?" Gaethje shouted at Topuria, mocking his lack of control on such a monumental stage. "Like an emotional little animal," the interim champion added.
Topuria, holding two championship belts, responded with a message of dominance.
"It's mine, boy," Topuria jabbed back at Gaethje. "It looks much better on me."
Personal Insults and Family
What was once a respectful battle between elite veterans has now turned deeply personal.
The hostility stems from comments Gaethje made regarding Topuria's recent divorce.
Gaethje called Topuria an "annoying little ba-" and suggested he understood why his ex-wife left him, saying, "All I can say is this. I would leave him. That's all I'm saying. No way I would put up with his s-."
Topuria responded on social media to Gaethje's remarks as a line that should not have been crossed.
The undefeated champion defended his family on X with a post that read, "Justin crossed a line. What happened between my ex-wife and me is our business," Topuria wrote on X.
"I thought he was a great guy. But since he crossed the personal line, he's not going to have my respect; he's not going to have my team's respect," Topuria said during an episode of UFC's YouTube docuseries "Embedded."
Topruia also predicted a devastating finish.
"All I'm going to need is two minutes in the Octagon," Topuria declared. "I'm going to put you to sleep in front of your whole family, your country, in front of everyone."
Gaethje Fires Back and Denies Crossing the Line
Gaethje has denied that he directly attacked Topuria's ex-wife. He insists that his comments were about Topuria's "narcissistic" personality.
"Proving my point. Insufferable little b- boy. Never said a thing about your wife," Gaethje posted on social media in response to Topuria's accusations.
He also responded to Topuria's claim that Gaethje crossed the line (via UFC on Paramount+ on YouTube):
"If that comment made him want to beat me up more, then I don't know what he was planning on doing before," he said. "If anything, I was defending his wife. I was like, ‘I can understand, this m- is annoying.'"
The two also traded insults in their back-and-forth video interview on The Pat McAfee Show, which was a short preview of what would occur during the actual press conference when the two finally faced off.
Main Event Stakes
The two will finally settle the score inside the Octagon on Sunday night. Topuria enters the fight undefeated, while Gaethje is looking to capture undisputed gold for the first time since winning the interim belt against Paddy Pimblett.
The press conference scuffle was just a short preview of the violence that will unfold come fight night.
Topuria is motivated by revenge for a personal slight, and will look to deliver a crowd-pleasing knockout. For Gaethje, it is about proving that remaining calm and collected will allow him to dethrone the champion on the biggest stage imaginable.
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This story was originally published June 12, 2026 at 11:39 PM.