The ‘Highlight’ is gunning for his shot at the lightweight title, and believes that he has exactly what it takes to succeed where everyone else has failed.
So far, no one has been able to crack the code on just how exactly to beat Khabib Nurmagomedov. The UFC lightweight champion is undefeated in his 27-fight career, having captured and defended his first world title belt in 2018. His string of success has built an unmistakable air of inevitability among fans and pundits; get in the cage with Khabib and prepare to suffocate under the weight of his smothering wrestling attack.
But, while the outcome may feel practically preordained, that doesn’t mean contenders aren’t still looking to become the first man to defy the odds and hand the Dagestani a loss in the cage. While he’s likely not next in line for a title shot, top contender Justin Gaethje believes that he’s got a better chance than most. Gaethje spoke to MMA Fighting’s Luke Thomas recently, outlining his chances against the champ.
“Who knows, man.” Gaethje said about his chances of winning. “My wrestling coach is Ben Cherrington, 2006 national champion from Boise State, NCAA. So I work with him twice a week. And if I was to get that fight, my training camp would be based around being in shape. I’m not saying I could beat him in a wrestling match, but a wrestling match is what I did my whole life. He’s not going to go out there and dominate me in a wrestling match.
“What it comes down to is my cardio being up to par with his, and the ability for me to grapple in as many situations and get into as many scrambles as he’s able to get into, because that’s where he breaks people. He gets you in the scrambles and you get tired. That is some tiring stuff. That’s why I avoid it, because I don’t want to get tired — I want to try to knock him out. You can’t pin people in a fight and I’m trying to get out of there as soon as possible. So yeah, that would be my focus.
“I would and will focus on that when I fight Khabib. I’m starting to do it now, so that when I do get that fight, I can wrestle for 25 minutes if I need to.”
Gaethje added that, along with his wrestling credentials and ability to stop takedowns, his scrambling ability would be a major factor in creating his path to victory.
“My ability to scramble, create scrambles,” added Gaethje. “We’re sweating more [in MMA], I’m more slippery than people wearing singlets and wrestling in college or any wrestling match. So all those factors come into play when it comes to that grappling. And yeah, I’m not going to go in there to wrestle with him. I’m going in there to stop takedowns, and that’s what I’ve been good at this whole time. And in the clinch, I throw hard shots.
“So you can’t fail or prosper without going out there and taking that chance, so I’ve gotta put myself in a position [to get the fight], and I think as opposed to anybody else at the top of this division, I would be the toughest out for him. No doubt. And it’s a challenge that I’m looking forward to.”
The ‘Highlight’ is riding high off a first round KO of Edson Barboza back in March. The win was his second quick stoppage victory, since dropping back to back fights against Dustin Poirier and Eddie Alvarez. The win against Barboza puts Gaethje squarely into the title hunt. However, unfortunately for him, with Dustin Poirier and Tony Ferguson (and even Conor McGregor) still in line looking to fight Nurmagomedov, Gaethje will likely have to win at least one more big fight to put himself in position for a shot at UFC gold.