Henry Cejudo broke down the keys to victory for Justin Gaethje against Dustin Poirier.
Gaethje (24-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) rematches Poirier (29-7 MMA, 21-6 UFC) for the vacant “BMF” title on July 29 in the UFC 291 headliner, which takes place at Delta Center in Salt Lake City and airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.
In his first fight with Poirier which took place in 2018, Gaethje found success with his leg kicks early, but ultimately Poirier’s pressure and heavy hands proved to be too much. Poirier won the bout by TKO in the fourth round. Cejudo would like to see Gaethje continue with the low kicks, but says he needs to sharpen up defensively.
“I think the kicking game is where it’s at,” Cejudo said on his YouTube channel. “But the key to that kicking game for Justin Gaethje, the second key, is his defense. He’s gonna have to figure something out rather than him just bringing his hands up and staying in this pocket.
“If you’re gonna do that, create a little more space. Continue kicking and defensively protect yourself. You’re gonna have to find this defense where you’re able to defend him while you’re kicking, or if he is punching at you, you can’t just block.”
Gaethje put together perhaps his most refined performance to date when he defeated elite striker Rafael Fiziev at UFC 286. Cejudo would like to see more of that version when he runs things back with Poirier.
“No. 3 is: Control that violence,” Cejudo added. “Justin’s gotten good in all areas, and particularly now he’s using more of his wrestling. He’s gotten better defensively, his striking has actually gotten better too. He’s been able to level change a lot with his striking. If he’s able to control some of that violence – when I say violence, I mean some of that power. If he’s able to control some of that power for five rounds, I think he’ll be good.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s even hub for UFC 291.
