UFC president Dana White dispelled the myth that Ilia Topuria quit in his fight against Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250.
Despite entering the UFC White House main event as a huge betting favorite, Topuria lost when Gaethje pulled off one of the biggest upsets of all time, as he won via fourth-round TKO due to corner stoppage. Due to Topuria’s eye blowing up and his being unable to see, his brother, Aleksandre, threw in the towel and told the referee to stop the contest.
But despite his brother being the one to stop the fight — and for good reason, because Topuria’s eye was a mess — there have been plenty of fans on social media and also fellow fighters, such as Paddy Pimblett, who have come out and called Topuria a quitter for not going the distance with Gaethje.
In White’s opinion, that’s a false narrative.
Dana White Says Ilia Topuria Did Not Quit at UFC White House
Speaking to Mike Babcock of TMZ Sports, White vehemently denied the accusations that Topuria quit in the fight against Gaethje. He also agreed with Topuria’s corner with their call to stop the fight.
“He’s doing good. Tough kid, obviously. After the first round, you could see his eye was bothering him. You could see that he got hit, and at one point, he started covering his eye like this and was kind of messing with it but Justin just kept busting him up the next couple of rounds. Then we had that little moment there with the three doctors and the ref. Ilia really wanted to continue, and I think that he probably won that round, too, but his corner, I think, stopped the fight, and props to them. Tons of heart,” White said.
Dana White Says Justin Gaethje’s Retirement Is Up to Him
White was also asked by TMZ if Gaethje should retire in the wake of a career-best performance. After all, it’s unlikely that Gaethje will ever top the moment of beating one of the best fighters in the world on the biggest stage imaginable.
According to White, retirement will be 100% Gaethje’s decision, and the UFC won’t push him one way or another.
“I would never say anything. Listen, if you’re thinking about retiring and that’s what you want to do, it’s probably what you should do. But, on the flipside, you just beat an undefeated badass decisively and finished him. I don’t know, it’s just something that needs to work out with himself in his own mind, and with his family, obviously,” White said.
As White said, Gaethje looked amazing against Topuria, so he clearly still has plenty of gas left in his tank at age 37. But at the same time, he will find it very difficult to top such an incredible moment inside the Octagon, so if he does decide to hang up his gloves and walk away on top like fellow UFC greats such as Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre once did, it should not surprise anyone, either. Ultimately, it will be up to “The Highlight” what he wants to do.
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