LAS VEGAS – While much of the MMA community speculates and focuses on the future and road maps toward big fights and UFC gold, Justin Gaethje is solely focused on the present.
The current task is a monumental one, as Gaethje (25-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) fights Max Holloway (25-7 MMA, 21-7 UFC) in a BMF title fight Saturday at UFC 300 at T-Mobile Arena.
“I know with a win here, I fight for the (lightweight) belt,” Gaethje told MMA Junkie and other reporters. “I know with a loss here, that all goes away. That’s what I’m fighting for.”
The stakes of a “BMF” title fight are anyone’s guess. This will be the third in the promotion’s history and the first time the title isn’t vacant going into the fight. With UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev unbooked, Dustin Poirier coming off a knockout win, and Gaethje sharing the UFC 300 card with Charles Oliveira vs. Arman Tsarukyan, the division is buzzing but its title picture clouded.
Gaethje sees that as a problem to figure out later.
“I’m a quarter-mile at a time kind of guy,” Gaethje said. “I do not look too far ahead. Honestly, I have no clue what the future holds. I don’t usually plan on being alive the day after my fights, so hopefully I’m there on Sunday.
“… I don’t play what-ifs, but you don’t pass up a championship opportunity. I do want my time (off). I do think June would probably be impossible for me, as every time I fight is a traumatic life experience. I need to go home and unwind, take care of my body, take care of my head. But I have coaches and a manager who ultimately make those decisions, so if they say, ‘Go,’ I go.”
Gaethje, 35, has won back-to-back fights over Rafael Fiziev and Dustin Poirier, but hasn’t competed since July 2023. He’s 7-2 in his most recent nine outings with the only two losses title shot opportunities against Oliveira and Khabib Nurmagomedov.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 300.
