For months, Ilia Topuria has been in a legal battle with his ex-wife, Giorgina Uzcategui Badell. Their relationship turned sour after Topuria filed a civil separation lawsuit in 2025. Giorgina, thereafter, filed a complaint alleging abuse. The case was eventually settled through an out-of-court settlement in 2026. Even though they reached a shared custody agreement for their daughter, she primarily stays with her mother. Amidst a tumultuous legal battle, Ilia Topuria is shifting focus to his son, Hugo. And in a candid moment, ‘El Matador’ revealed his true feelings on his son’s future—a vision that cuts through the noise of his personal drama.
Talking about his future, the reigning 155 lbs king revealed that his son Hugo is really interested in martial arts, to the extent that he has learned most of the moves by asking him and his coaches. Though ‘El Matador’ is definitely happy to see junior Topuria’s progress, he remains open to supporting Hugo in whatever endeavours he decides to pursue in the future.
“You have to see my son. You don’t know how good he is. Listen, in my life, I never teach him anything,” said Topuria. “Like everything he knows, because he saw it. I have never ever put him in a class, like come here and do something. He’s the one who’s always asking me and the coaches, like, when we finish the training, he goes, and he’s like, ‘Do you mind to do pads with me?’ or ‘Do you mind to be with me in something?’”
“If he wants to fight, I’m gonna go with you. Whatever he wants to do, do it. For me, the most important? I want him to be happy and to realize that he has something to do in his life. Some purpose, exactly!”
For those unaware, Ilia Topuria’s son, Hugo, is reportedly 6-7 years old. However, he is Topuria’s son from a previous relationship, and Giogina was the stepmother.
Even amid the troubled family situation, ‘El Matador’ has remained close to his son. He often uploads clips of Hugo hitting the pads with his coaches, which draw a lot of interaction from fans. Hugo also seems to have a good relationship with the former bantamweight champ Merab Dvalishvili. On Instagram, a viral clip shows Topuria’s son submitting ‘The Machine’ with a head-and-arm choke. But that’s not all.
In the post-fight press conference after UFC 317, Topuria revealed that his son also corrected him on the moves he made after the knockout over Charles Oliveira.
“He asks me all the time that he wants to fight. He’s like, ‘Dad, train me train me train me.’… [After UFC 317] He was like, ‘Why are you connecting with the right hand? You had to do the uppercut.”
Ilia Topuria, oğlu hakkında konuşuyor:
“Oğlumun ne kadar iyi olduğunu bilmiyorsunuz. Hayatım boyunca ona hiçbir şey öğretmedim. Bildiği her şeyi sadece izleyerek öğrendi.
Onu hiçbir zaman bir kursa ya da antrenmana gönderip ‘hadi bir şeyler yap’ demedim. Antrenman bittiğinde… pic.twitter.com/mqMm2tub8d
— Kırmızı Köşe (@KirmiziKoseMMA) April 10, 2026
Now, as Ilia Topuria is happily playing the role of a supportive father for his son, the UFC lightweight champ seems equally heartbroken for not doing the same for his daughter.
Ilia Topuria reveals feeling disappointed with life following divorce
According to court reports from Móstoles, Ilia Topuria’s ex-wife restricted him from seeing his daughter for several months. However, when she sought to move out of Spain with their daughter, citing online hate, the court shut down her plea and also lifted the restriction on Topuria. The court ruled in favor of the UFC champion, finding that Giorgina’s decision to prevent Topuria from seeing their daughter personally was made without any legal basis.
Following that legal case, the UFC champ and his ex-wife reached a settlement in February 2026, in which Giorgina dropped all the charges against Topuria. But while doing so, she retained the primary physical custody of their one-and-a-half-year-old daughter. Reacting to the divorce, the 29-year-old revealed that he was very disappointed with his life, especially missing his girl at home.
“Yes, I would say it was a disappointment in my life,” Topuria told Auditore. “No one wants to break up with their family, especially when at your house [and] there is a little daughter.”
Later, Ilia Topuria also claimed that his mother helped him during the tough times, providing some much-needed personal support. That said, do you think he’ll keep supporting his son and daughter’s futures?
