Ilia Topuria hits back at Justin Gaethje’s dad

Ilia Topuria has responded to Justin Gaethje’s dad calling him "little short guy" before the UFC White House clash.

Topuria will face Gaethje on June 14 at the UFC White House card to unify the lightweight titles in the main event. 

Recently, Gaethje’s father, John Ray Gaethje, made some comments about ‘El Matador’, which added another layer to the rivalry between the American and Spaniard.

Gaethje posted a video on his YouTube channel on Monday, in which he was seen with his camp and hanging out with family and friends. His parents are shown sharing their thoughts on their son’s upcoming fight.

“This is the biggest fight of his life but we’ve said that there or four other times,” John Ray Gaethje said.

“He’s fighting another little short guy, and he’s done really well against [Michael] Chandler and [Rafael] Fiziev, and a few others. I just see the same thing happening for this fight. This is what we trained for. This is what he put his whole life into since he was 4 years old. I’m excited and ready for it to happen.”

Ilia Topuria watched the video on social media and reacted to it by responding to Gaethje family.

“Fathers hope. Champions know,” Topuria wrote.

“I’ve heard this story before: bigger men, stronger men, better men. Men who said I was just a small guy who was about to get a lesson in humility. They all learned the truth the same way. Your son already knows who I am. On June 14th, you will too. 18-0 PAPA“

Topuria is the reigning UFC lightweight champion, and he won the gold by stopping Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 in June 2025.