Justin Gaethje, one of Conor McGregor's fiercest UFC rivals, has paid the former two-weight world champion a rare compliment, branding him an "amazing fighter".
Once an interim champion and twice a world title challenger, Gaethje has always been just around the corner from a fight with McGregor, with the pair never sharing particularly kind words over the years. Their relationship is further soured outside of the cage by the American being managed by Aliu Abdelaziz, one of McGregor's least favourite people in MMA.
But in a new interview, Gaethje has explained what it is that makes the Irishman such a big hit with fans, and why he is the sport's highest paid athlete of all time. He even was positive about his rival's fighting ability, despite him not having won a fight in over three years.
“You know Conor McGregor is the most paid athlete in this sport by far because of a specific reason,” Gaethje said on the Fighting & Finance podcast. “Two specific reasons: He’s an amazing fighter and he’s entertaining as hell. So those two things are a perfect combination.”
Gaethje, 34, has gone 2-2 in his last four fights and most recently won a decision against Rafael Fiziev at UFC 286 in London. His next outing will be against Dustin Poirier at UFC 291 in July. Poirier stopped McGregor in his last two outings, and the pair will compete for the unofficial 'BMF' title, which was previously held by Jorge Masvidal.
“They wanted five rounds, and I was like, ‘No,'” Gaethje said of the title being offered up. “I’ll do three if we’re paid the same no matter what, so I’ll do three. And then they came with this opportunity, but ultimately all that matters is what comes with it. I actually think it’s a very rare occasion where the UFC throws a bone to us fighters.
"With this ‘BMF’ championship is everything that comes with the championship in the UFC. You get a cut of the PPV. So ultimately business-wise, I think it was exciting. I got paid way more because of it and solely because of it, and that’s something the UFC didn’t have to do.
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"When it happened with Diaz and Masvidal I thought it was dumb. I still think it’s dumb, but I think when I look at it from that perspective, I think it’s awesome.”
He he missed out on the undisputed lightweight title twice with submission defeats to Charles Oliveira and Khabib Nurmagomedov, just like his upcoming opponent Poirier. However, he once held interim gold after stepping in to fight Tony Ferguson on short notice in the UFC's first event back from the coronavirus pandemic.
Meanwhile, McGregor is working towards his own octagon return against Michael Chandler, which will take place at the end of the year. It will be his first fight since July of 2021, and will come at the end of this summer's season of The Ultimate Fighter which premiered earlier this week.
