Justin Gaethje Calls Ilia Topuria's Loaded Gloves Accusation a Lame Excuse

Justin Gaethje is not losing sleep over Ilia Topuria's conspiracy theory. Nearly three months after beating Topuria at UFC Freedom 250, Gaethje responded to the former champion's accusation that he loaded his gloves during their June 14 title unification fight.

Topuria posted on social media claiming, "Next time I'll make sure they check Justin's gloves so he doesn't put anything weird on them." The accusation surfaced after Topuria suffered a broken foot, a broken nose, and two broken orbital bones in the fight, per LowKick MMA.

Gaethje was not impressed. "94 days and the best you could come up with is a lame excuse," he fired back, calling the allegation "as terrible as your last performance." When pressed further, Gaethje pointed out that his hand wraps and gloves were properly inspected before the bout, with footage reportedly showing clear examination of his equipment.

"People don't believe that. I've done that to everybody's face that I fought," Gaethje said, referencing his well-documented history of inflicting damage on opponents with his hands.

Despite previously seeming reluctant about an immediate rematch, Gaethje left the door open. "Am I willing to? I just beat the sh*t out of him, of course I would," he said, though he added that Topuria's approach is not the way to earn one. "That's not the way to do it."

The Nevada State Athletic Commission has not commented publicly on Topuria's claim. Dana White previously shut down the accusation as baseless, per Bloody Elbow.