Justin Gaethje sees potential title implications with a win at UFC 291.
Gaethje (24-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) rematches Dustin Poirier (29-7 MMA, 21-6 UFC) for the “BMF” title in the July 29 headliner, which takes place at Delta Center in Salt Lake City and airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.
Beneil Dariush meets former champion Charles Oliveira in the UFC 289 co-main event June 10, and both Gaethje and Poirier agree a win would make Dariush the No. 1 contender for lightweight champion Islam Makhachev. But if Dariush loses, Gaethje thinks the next title challenger will emerge from his fight with Poirier.
“These rankings are for a reason,” Gaethje said on ESPN’s “DC & RC.” “They might not be as legit as we think they are, but he’s No. 2, I’m No. 3. No. 1 is fighting No. 4, and the champion needs someone to fight. I think if Dariush wins, he’s going to fight (Makhachev) in October, and the winner of that fight will fight the winner of this fight. If Oliveira (wins), I think one of us is going to be right back into camp.”
Both Gaethje and Poirier have fallen short twice in their pursuit of undisputed UFC gold. A loss to Poirier would be a major setback in terms of the title picture, but “The Highlight” isn’t necessarily looking at it like a do-or-die situation.
“I don’t want to put myself in a position where I’ve got to think if I lose, but I wouldn’t imagine because the fire is not gone,” Gaethje said. “When I talk in those hyperboles, I’m talking about the future. I’m talking about the reality of the situation. I’m 35 fights into a career. I’m 34 years old. There’s plenty examples of going too long, and I have people around me that love me that are going to prevent that. I trust them, and when they want to have that conversation, I’ll listen to them. For right now, we’re full steam ahead.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s even hub for UFC 291.
