Justin Gaethje has been making his case for the longest time to challenge for the UFC Lightweight Championship. He has been through a lot and has even won interim gold before, but given where he is in his career he is ready to make a final push for the undisputed title.
RELATED: Paddy Pimblett continues X-rated tirade against Justin Gaethje’s title shot
At UFC 324, he will get another chance to win the interim title as Gaethje prepares to fight Paddy Pimblett. Both men were likely hoping to battle undisputed champion Ilia Topuria, but ‘El Matador’ is currently in the middle of a hiatus due to some personal issues.
During last night’s press conference, Gaethje gave his thoughts on potentially playing the role of spoiler for those eager to see Topuria vs. Pimblett.
Gaethje wants to play the role of spoiler at UFC 324
“I didn’t know long before they announced the fight that it was going to be Paddy. I think they were waiting to see if Ilia was going to fight. … It turns out he’s taking a seat.”
“So Paramount, this is: They need a coming out party between Michael Johnson and Justin Gaethje. Paramount, a combination of UFC; this is a fight that everyone wants. We’re going to have huge fans for the UFC. Entertainment business, and I’m the most entertaining fighter in the world. And this guy is pretty close behind me. It’s going to be a great fight.”
“At the end of the day, like I said, we get paid as champions, and it definitely gives me the opportunity to fight Ilia,” Gaethje said. “I want to fight Ilia. I want to play spoiler, just like I did with Khabib.” [Nurmagomedov] and Toon [Ferguson]. I’m going to ruin this for everyone. There will be no Paddy and Ilia. I’m going to do the same thing I did for that fight, and then I’m going to fight Ilia on the White House card when he’s ready to fight again. We’ll see when he’s ready again.”
Quotes via MMA fighting
#Justin #Gaethje #plans #play #spoiler #role #Paddy #Pimblett #UFC #BJPenn.com