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Paddy Pimblett questions why Ilia Topuria UFC title showdown still hasn’t been made official

Originally posted on Bloody Elbow | By Donagh Corby | Last updated Nov 19, 2025 8:55 AM ET

Paddy Pimblett is beginning to get frustrated in the wait for his lightweight title opportunity being confirmed.

It appears that there is some jostling between Pimblett and Justin Gaethje over who will be Ilia Topuria’s first title defence at 155lb. The Georgian is likely to defend his title on the first UFC numbered event of next year, which coincides with the beginning of a monster $7.7billion broadcast deal with Paramount.

Pimblett and Topuria came head-to-head in Las Vegas following the newly-crowned champion’s win over Charles Oliveira back in June. But Dana White was not happy with the face-off, and insisted it wasn’t ‘the fight’ even despite their years-long rivalry and the Brit’s ascent to the top five.

Paddy Pimblett irked by delay to Ilia Topuria announcement

Speaking with JNMedia, Paddy Pimblett laid bare his frustrations with the lack of confirmation of his next fight. After obliterating Michael Chandler back in April at UFC 314, he has been ascending the rankings due to other results working out in his favor, and he is now a legitimate top five contender.

“Me and Topuria’s got the storyline built in it’s all there,” Pimblett explained. “It’s half nice for me that he’s got the belt even though I don’t like him and I rather he not be a two-division champ, it’s better for me that he won it because if Charles had won I would have definitely had to fight someone else first.

“But with Ilia having the belt it’s just a storyline that’s already set up and ready to go. I don’t know why it’s not already announced and made and written in a contract. We’ll see what happens in the next few weeks.”

Paddy Pimblett and Ilia Topuria’s feud goes back years

The rivalry between Pimblett and Topuria dates back years, and first became physical at a UFC London event in 2022. However, it actually started before that when Guram Kutateladze was calling for a fight with the Brit and received some abuse back that included criticism of Georgia.

Topuria identifies as both Georgian and Spanish due to being born in Georgia before moving to Spain in his youth and spending most of his formative years there.

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After an exchange on X, Pimblett ended up going too far when he wrote: “Lad how stupid are these Georgians, man. No wonder the Russians terrorize their lives.”

It led to the pair having a physical altercation at a hotel where Pimblett threw a bottle of hand sanitizer at his rival. They have since had a number of run-ins at press conferences and media events, most notably facing off after UFC 317.

This article first appeared on Bloody Elbow and was syndicated with permission.

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