Topuria and Makhachev dispute who rejected White House fight offer

Ilia Topuria claimed he went to bed knowing he would fight Islam Makhachev at the White House event, only to receive a call hours before the announcement saying Makhachev was injured and he would face Justin Gaethje instead. Islam Makhachev responded by stating he accepted the White House fight offer but was told the next day that Topuria requested a huge purse and was denied, leading to the fight falling through. Makhachev insisted that Topuria's own manager confirmed this version of events and challenged Topuria to stop lying about the situation. Meanwhile, Jorge Masvidal and Orion Cosce backed Sean Strickland over Khamzat Chimaev, with Masvidal criticizing Chimaev's fighting style. Dricus du Plessis named Israel Adesanya as his most technical opponent and Sean Strickland and Brad Tavares as his hardest hitters, notably excluding Chimaev from consideration.