Ilia Topuria appears to have reversed his stance on Paddy Pimblett once again.
The two nearly came to blows at the UFC London fighter hotel in March 2022 when Topuria confronted the submission expert over remarks made about his fellow Georgians.
A public feud has been ongoing for the past three years, although the fighters seemed to set aside their differences with a brief embrace at the most recent UFC London weigh-ins.
However, Topuria, who is set to fight for the vacant lightweight title at UFC 317 next weekend, maintains he still holds strong contempt for `The Baddy`.
Speaking to ESPN Deportes, the 28-year-old stated about Pimblett:
“He’s a hypocrite. You know, I remember we shared a press conference once, and he said something like, `I`m fighting on the main card, and you`re on the prelims,` some kind of nonsense.
“And now I`m thinking, I have two belts. Where are you?
“Who the f**k is Paddy Pimblett right now and why would he deserve to fight me right now?”
Former featherweight king Topuria has already marked Pimblett, who secured the biggest win of his career against Michael Chandler in April, as his desired next opponent.
He stated:
“Honestly, if I could choose a fight, I would fight him because I hate him. He`s a pain in the ass.
“I would love to give that fight to the fans, because for a long time, I believe that in the UFC, you haven`t seen a real fight.
“Two people who truly want to fight each other, and what better way than to fight in front of everyone and put on a show?
“I know what will happen, and it won`t be good for him.”
Before potentially settling the score with Pimblett, Topuria must first face former 155lbs champion and fan favorite Charles Oliveira.
However, `El Matador` believes he will have an easy time against the Brazilian, stating:
“Charles is a great fighter.
“I would say he`s a legendary fighter, one of the few still active in the UFC.
“But the truth is, his style fits mine perfectly to put him to sleep in the first round.
“Because he has no mobility, he doesn`t move.”
Percy Harlow