Ilia Topuria claimed he went to bed knowing he would fight Islam Makhachev at the White House event, but received a call hours before the announcement that Makhachev was injured and he would face Justin Gaethje instead. Topuria questioned why Makhachev doesn't want to fight him. Makhachev responded that he's tired of Topuria's fabrications, stating he agreed to the White House fight but was told the next day that Topuria requested a huge purse and was denied. Makhachev insisted Topuria refused the fight and that even Topuria's manager confirmed this. The exchange also included other news: Jorge Masvidal and Chase Hooper picked Sean Strickland over Khamzat Chimaev, with Masvidal criticizing Chimaev's style. Dricus Du Plessis said Israel Adesanya was his most technical opponent and Sean Strickland and Brad Tavares were the toughest, not considering his meeting with Chimaev a real fight.
