Less than a year after Ilia Topuria’s lightweight title win, the UFC will put an interim title on the line at UFC 324 next month. Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett, who have both made strong arguments to take on Topuria, will fight for the interim lightweight title at UFC 324 amid Topuria’s indefinite absence due to personal reasons.
This will be Gaethje’s third shot at an undisputed UFC title after previous losses to Charles Oliveira and Khabib Nurmagomedov. He earned the interim title shot after recent wins over Dustin Poirier and Rafael Fiziev.
If Gaethje wants a shot at Topuria and the undisputed lightweight title, he could make recent comments from one of his former rivals a point of interest in his camp.
Charles Oliveira: Justin Gaethje’s struggles could determine success against Paddy Pimblett
In a recent interview with Fighting lookOliveira weighed in on Gaethje’s upcoming fight against Pimblett.
“He [Pimblett] is good on his feet, can take the fight to the ground and is constantly on the move,” Oliveira said.
“On the other hand, we know that Justin Gaethje is a very tough fighter with crazy striking, but he has some flaws on the ground. I think Pimblett doesn’t want to exchange blows with him, he will probably try to take him to the ground.”
“If he decides to exchange blows, he could be knocked out. But if he bets on the takedown, he has a chance to become champion. Still, I would really like to see Gaethje emerge victorious.” (h/t Bloody elbow)
While Gaethje is known for his electric punches, he has more experience in wrestling, dating back to before he started his MMA career. He has shown solid takedown defense in recent wins over Fiziev and Tony Ferguson.
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