Ilia Topuria’s manager Malki Kawa is setting the record straight.
Topuria is set to face Justin Gaethje in a lightweight title unification bout in the main event of UFC White House on June 14. There was conversation about a matchup between Topuria and Islam Makhachev, but it was brief.
“That Monday before, I called and said, ‘Hey, are you guys going to use Ilia Topuria for this card?,’” Kawa said on an Instagram live. “The answer was no. Wednesday comes around, I get a phone call that says he could
fight, it’s his choice: Justin Gaethje or Islam Makhachev. Then I immediately said, ‘Shit, we want Islam.’ They said, ‘OK, great. We’ll give you x number to fight him. And I said, ‘Bro, you know that never will happen.’
“They said here’s the number, you have a choice, I said, ‘I want Islam.’ That’s exactly what I said. … That was on Wednesday.”
A few days later, Kawa says the UFC reached back out — which took place just a day before the card would be officially announced at UFC 326 in March. While Topuria and his team hoped it would be Makhachev, it wasn’t meant to be due to an injury — thus, setting up the fight with Gaethje, the interim lightweight champ after defeating Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 in January.
“Friday comes, they didn’t speak to me, I didn’t speak to them,” Kawa explained. “I go to bed… 10:00 at night I got to sleep. At 11:59 to the T, I get a phone call. I’m getting blown up by my brother… ‘Hey, bro. Hunter just called me, they want Ilia to take the fight. They want Ilia to fight.’
“I call Hunter [he says] we want Ilia to fight. I said, ‘OK. Islam?’ Islam can’t fight, his hand is messed up. That Friday night, I’m on the phone with the UFC brass and we’re negotiating… all night. That negotiation was for Justin Gaethje. Islam Makhachev was never an actual option. Who is ducking who?”
Kawa further clarifies that Topuria still wants the Makhachev fight after UFC White House if all goes well in June, and when they go back to the negotiating table, the reason the fight wouldn’t happen would be on the UFC, not Topuria.
“I never once said Islam was ducking anybody,” Kawa said. “Everyone agrees that Islam and Ilia might be the biggest fight in UFC history. Don’t you think it should have the biggest pay day in UFC history? I’d be a damn fool to take that for less than the right numbers for that fight. Why would I do that?
“It’s not like I asked for $100 million. I didn’t ask for $50 million. I asked for a number that I think is super reasonable. You guys are telling me that Ilia Topuria is running from Islam Makhachev? We’re asking for that fight. We actually want to move up to 170, fight him there, and win that third belt.”
