Pimblett, who is coming off third-round TKO win over Michael Chandler in April, is ranked No. 10 in the official UFC lightweight rankings after Topuria's entrance following UFC 317. Gaethje, who is 2-2 in his past four fights, is No. 4.

The rivalry between UFC lightweights Paddy Pimblett and Ilia Topuria has long simmered and stems from a social media feud in which Pimblett hurled insults towards the country of Georgia and its people,

During his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, Topuria snubbed #1 contender Arman Tsarukyan of the next title shot because he had withdrawn from a title fight with Islam Makhachev due to a back injury. While he was obviously talking about Tsarukyan, Rogan had misunderstood him and thought he was addressing the #8-ranked contender, Paddy Pimblett.