Arman Tsarukyan stated he would like Justin Gaethje to withdraw so he could fight Ilia Topuria, saying his goal is to throw Topuria out of the UFC and that he will only stop after at least five title defenses. Merab Dvalishvili clarified he has no problems with Dagestani fighters except Umar Nurmagomedov, whom he dislikes, emphasizing that Armenia, Georgia, Chechnya, and Dagestan all have hardworking people engaged in healthy competition. Topuria, who recently updated his chest tattoo, fired back at Tsarukyan calling him stupid and saying he would break his jaw in the first round if they met. The post also mentioned that Arman discussed a potential fight with Volkanovski, Demetrious Johnson predicted Khamzat Chimaev would beat Sean Strickland, Benoit Saint-Denis announced a fight with Paddy Pimblett, and Bogdan Guskov declined a fight with Baranyevski.