“People like Ilia Topuria constantly call me, I see it,” the American said in an interview with The Schmo. “I will gladly make him humbler if he can go this way and reach me. You can’t just use your tongue to get up. In the world of fighting, you can achieve a lot with your tongue, but this time you have to fight.”
Earlier, Topuria’s coach announced that his ward was offered on July 8 at UFC 290 in Las Vegas to fight with Brian Ortega or Josh Emmett.
Brian Ortega, 32, is on a two-loss streak after losing a decision to Alex Volkanovski and suffering a shoulder injury against Yair Rodriguez, while Ilia Topuria, 26, has won five fights in the UFC, the last of which finished with a Bryce Mitchell arm triangle choke.
Brian Ortega and Ilia Topuria are currently ranked third and ninth in the UFC featherweight rankings, respectively.