Paddy Pimblett and Ilia Topuria surprised everyone at the UFC London weigh-ins on March 21, 2025, with a fist bump at the O2 Arena. Their rivalry kicked off in 2022 with a hotel scuffle where Pimblett threw a hand sanitizer bottle at Topuria. Since then, they’ve clashed at press conferences and traded barbs. This time, they were there for UFC Fight Night 255 to support teammates, not to fight, and their friendly exchange stood out.
🚨 Ilia Topuria said the next time he sees Paddy Pimblett he is going to “take his f**king head off”
The two just fist bumped on stage 🤝
h/t @Chisanga_Malata pic.twitter.com/hq1Bd1PFEw
— ACD MMA (@acdmma_) March 21, 2025
Pimblett’s Take
“He looked at me, I was looking at him and he done that [salute] and then obviously on stage, as I walked past him we both just laughed and looked at each other. I thought it’d be quite funny to just go (fist bump) and he went like that [open hand] on my hand and high fived it. We might not like each other, but had a little laugh then,” Pimblett said on his YouTube channel.
He was at the event to back Nathan Fletcher. The moment happened during the weigh-in for his teammate’s bout, showing a side of Pimblett usually hidden by their ongoing tension.
Topuria’s View
“We just weren’t in our fighting roles. I went to support a friend of mine, he went to support another friend of his, then we met and we greeted each other. At the end of the day we are athletes. But if we enter the field of combat and we have to fight, then the story changes,” Topuria said in an interview with journalist Irati Prat.
Ilia Topuria on his interaction with Paddy Pimblett last week:
“We just weren’t in our fighting roles. I went to support a friend of mine, he went to support another friend of his, then we met and we greeted each other.
At the end of the day we are athletes. But if we enter the… pic.twitter.com/cMBzhJT4ph
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) March 31, 2025
Topuria was there for Guram Kutateladze. His next move is at lightweight after vacating his featherweight title, while Pimblett faces Michael Chandler at UFC 314 in Miami on April 12.
This wasn’t about settling scores. Their history started with Pimblett’s comments about Georgia that set Topuria off years ago. Now, with Topuria climbing divisions and Pimblett on a roll, a future fight could still happen. For now, this weigh-in moment gave fans something different from two guys known for bad blood.
