The lightweight division in the UFC is stacked but has no champion. Ilia Topuria will fight Charles Oliveira to decide who will get the title, but after that, who’s next? Well, Justin Gaethje wants to be next, but if things don’t go his way, he might retire, according to his agent.
Ali Abdelaziz, who is one of the biggest MMA agents in the world, declared in an interview with Submission Radio that Gaethje told him that he will “fight for the title” and if not, he will “hang up my gloves.“
Gaethje’s agent went on to say, “he won three of his last four, he saved the UFC two times. They needed him and he’s there.” The former interim lightweight champion is a UFC staple.
Ilia Topuria presents new challenges at 155
Islam Makhachev vacated the title as he is moving up to welterweight. This opened up endless possibilities at lightweight. Ilia Topuria was the king at 145 and moved up. He will face former champion Charles Oliveira in a barnburner at UFC 317.
All this opened up doors for Gaethje. ‘The Highlight’ faced Oliveira in the past when the Brazilian was champ. He ended up losing by submission, but he hurt Oliveira plenty of times prior to losing. If ‘Do Bronx’ beats Topuria, a rematch would cause fireworks.
As for Topuria, he is an undefeated knockout artist. Coming up from featherweight, ‘El Matador’ has racked up an impressive 16-0 record with 14 finishes. He knocked out Max Holloway, Alex Volkanovski, Josh Emmett, and Bryce Mitchell just to mention a few. His resume is impressive, but it was at 145.
Topuria vs. Gaethje is a super fight
Topuria is considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. Gaethje has been an elite fighter for years. He’s fought everyone. Topuria is a killer (6 KOs, 8 SUBs) and Gaethje has 21 finishes in 25 wins (20 KOs, 1 SUB). This fight spells PPV sells for the UFC.
While a rematch with Oliveira would be enticing, Topuria vs. Gaethje is something we haven’t seen before and their styles match up perfectly. However, it all depends on whether the UFC offers him the title fight or not. If they decide otherwise, ‘The Highlight’ might hang his gloves for good.