Ilia Topuria issues first comments following brutal UFC Freedom 250 loss to Justin Gaethje on White House lawn

For the first time in his MMA life, Ilia Topuria is left to pick up the pieces of a bad night.

The now-former UFC lightweight champion issued his first comments Monday following a brutal upset loss to Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250 in Washington, D.C. The result, which headlined the UFC’s much-discussed takeover of the White House’s South Lawn, marked Topuria’s first professional setback and left the pound-for-pound star nearly unrecognizable, with both eyes swollen closed and his face a battered mess.

Topuria was transported to the hospital immediately after Sunday’s event. On Monday, he reflected on his performance, congratulating Gaethje and pointing toward a potential rematch between the two lightweight rivals.

Justin, congratulations. You said you’d leave your mark on my face… and you did.

You took the sight from my right eye in the first round, and by the end of the second, from my left too.

No excuses.

I had one of the best camps of my life. I came in sharp, prepared, and ready. Last night was your night.

That’s the nature of this game. Glory and pain walk side by side.

I’ll heal. I’ll rest. And I’ll return stronger, wiser, and far more dangerous.

And trust me… this story between us is far from over.

We will have our rematch.

Justin, congratulations. You said you’d leave your mark on my face… and you did.

You took the sight from my right eye in the first round, and by the end of the second, from my left too.

I had one of the best camps of my life. I came in sharp, prepared, and ready. Last night was your night.

That’s the nature of this game. Glory and pain walk side by side.

I’ll heal. I’ll rest. And I’ll return stronger, wiser, and far more dangerous.

And trust me… this story between us is far from over.

For Topuria, Sunday’s result was a stunning end to an unbeaten run that propelled the 29-year-old Spanish-Georgian into true MMA stardom. Topuria entered the weekend as the sport’s the No. 2-ranked pound-for-pound fighter and carried an aura of nigh-untouchability, having knocked out UFC legends Alexander Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira en route to picking up titles at both 145 pounds and 155 pounds.

But the 38-year-old American underdog, Gaethje, managed to summon a vintage performance on the biggest stage, dragging Topuria into a war of attrition and ultimately forcing him to retire on the stool between the fourth and fifth rounds.

UFC CEO Dana White indicated post-fight that he doesn’t expect Topuria to return anytime soon after the damage he sustained in Sunday’s main event.

“Ilia’s in the hospital. He’s busted up,” White said. “I’m not a doctor, but his eye looked like he probably has a broken orbital. I don’t know that, that’s not a fact, but I’m assuming.

“My plans for him are to go home and rest, recover and take his time. Tonight was a rough night for him — I just want to make sure he’s healthy and good, and I’m not ever thinking about him fighting again. I just want him to go home and relax and rest and heal.”