Ilia Topuria revealed that if he moves up to welterweight to fight Islam Makhachev, he will not be stripped of his featherweight title because he plans to continue defending the lightweight belt. Topuria also expressed disappointment in Paddy Pimblett's performance against Renato Moicano, stating he knew Pimblett was a poor fighter but didn't realize how bad. Meanwhile, Jiri Prochazka discussed his recent loss, saying he was at only 40-50 percent capacity after injury and fought in "sparring mode," expecting the referee to stop the bout. Magomed Ankalaev (via manager Abdelaziz) challenged Khalil Rountree to a 25-minute striking masterclass. UFC announced several new matchups, including a difficult assignment for Cory Sandhagen against Merab Dvalishvili instead of Sean O'Malley. Details are limited on some stories.
