"He doesn’t want that smoke," "The UFC is fake" - Fans react to Paddy Pimblett and Ilia Topuria sharing friendly moment at UFC London face-off

MMA fans recently shared their takes after witnessing a recent interaction between Paddy Pimblett and Ilia Topuria. The cordial Pimblett-Topuria moment starkly contrasts what fans knew about their rivalry.

The feud between Pimblett and Topuria started with a brash comment from the former. In 2021, 'The Baddy' made a derogatory remark about Georgians involving the Russo-Georgian war. His comments earned him much flak, especially from fighters of Georgian origin.

Topuria, who has Georgian roots, was offended by Pimblett's words. 'El Matador' attacked Pimblett for his remarks when their paths crossed in the fighters' hotel before UFC London in 2022. They even traded barbs at the UFC 282 pre-fight presser.

However, Topuria was in attendance at the recently concluded UFC London ceremonial weigh-ins when Pimblett came to the stage accompanying a teammate who's fighting at the event. Many expected a contentious moment with both fighters in close proximity, but they just shared a quick handshake before 'The Baddy' left the stage.

Check out their interaction below:

Reacting to their interaction, fans took to the comments section of the above post. One wrote:

"He doesn’t want that smoke once Ilia moved up to 155 [lbs]"

Others commented:

"What the fu*k[?] The UFC is fake 😂

"This typa BS is what killing UFC. You can’t be all nice in person and talk shit online."

"What about the beef[?]"

Check out more reactions below:

Fan reactions to @ChampRDS X update. [Image courtesy: @ChampRDS on X]

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Tom Aspinall draws a parallel between the striking styles of Paddy Pimblett and Dricus du Plessis

Paddy Pimblett's striking has come under scrutiny on several occasions. While his grappling is respected by fans and fighters alike, many question how he fares in the stand-up department against the division's elite.

Interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall recently claimed that Pimblett's striking is "underrated" and that the Liverpool native could knock out Michael Chandler in his next outing. He compared 'The Baddy's' stand-up game to that of middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis, highlighting how their styles are awkward but effective.

Aspinall said in an interview on the One On One YouTube channel:

"His [Pimblett's] striking isn't the prettiest and most traditional of striking, but it's effective. Yeah, very effective. And we see it with guys like DDP. That awkwardness causes people a lot of problems, man. And I think that Paddy's striking is underrated. I think that Paddy can knock him out, to be honest. I think he can."

Check out Tom Aspinall's comments below: