SALT LAKE CITY – Justin Gaethje doesn’t hold the lightweight title, but he’s in an unusual position where he may hold a lot more cards than most top contenders.
In the UFC 291 main event Saturday at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Gaethje (25-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) once again lived through frames of his life that would’ve been unconceivable decades ago.
“This is such a cool life,” Gaethje told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “I couldn’t imagine I’d be here as a child. I thank God every day for this.”
Moments prior, Gaethje defeated Dustin Poirier (29-8 MMA, 21-7 UFC) by knockout and earned the promotion’s BMF title. In doing so, he also avenged a loss from April 2018 and potentially solidified him as the next in line for undisputed UFC lightweight gold.
As he sat with his black BMF belt propped in front of him on the table, Gaethje weighed in on the options in front of him. UFC star Conor McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC), the biggest sell in MMA, expressed interest in Gaethje on Twitter following the fight. Gaethje admitted the idea intrigues him, but there are obstacles.
“I think he’s turned me down six times,” Gaethje said. “Usually, you have to lose to fight him. So I’m not sure what’s going on. … I fight in MMA. I like to fight big fights. I like exciting things. It sounds pretty exciting to me. I’m not going to fight someone on steroids. I’ve never taken steroids in my life and never will. Well, maybe when I retire, I might. But I’ve never taken steroids in my life and I don’t want to fight someone who is cheating. I probably shouldn’t even say that if I want the fight, but it’s the truth.”
If not McGregor, Gaethje’s next challenge could be against the winner of champion Islam Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) and next title challenger Charles Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) at UFC 294 in October. However, Gaethje defers to the matchmakers when it comes to booking fights. Gaethje added he has no interest being the backup fight.
“We’ll see, man,” Gaethje said. “The UFC (are) the guys who make the calls. So we’ll see what happens. I have no idea.”
One idea Gaethje shot down is an immediate rematch with Poirier since they’re tied 1-1 in their lifetime head-to-head series. Beyond that, Gaethje said the ball will be in Poirier’s court as to whether or not a trilogy fight happens.
“In the cage after the fight, I said, ‘Hey man, let’s both agree to never fight each other again, unless you have to have it. Then, I’m here.’ We’re 1-1, so we’ll see,” Gaethje said. “I would never deny him that opportunity, just like he would never deny me the opportunity. I don’t want it to be my next fight.”
Gaethje, 34, has won back-to-back fights. He’s earned 12 performance bonuses in 12 promotional appearances – an unprecedented accomplishment.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 291.
