Justin Gaethje became a two-time interim lightweight champion at UFC 324 on Jan. 24 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “The Highlight” faced Paddy Pimblett in the fight card’s main event and soundly defeated “The Baddy” via unanimous decision.
In November, champion Ilia Topuria announced that he was taking an extended break from fighting to deal with divorce. It was unknown how long the champion would be sidelined but he indicated that he would not be fighting in the first quarter of 2026. In his absence, the fight promotion opted to crown an interim titleholder.
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In the fight with Pimblett, Gaethje opted to circle toward Pimblett’s power hand, something former flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson questioned. Johnson demonstrated that he’d have met Gaethje with leg kicks if he were to employ the same tactic against him.
“He was kicking me though, but he kicked like a b*tch. So I was like, I can walk through that. Once I figured I could walk through it, then it was money,” Gaethje said on Johnson’s YouTube channel.
Gaethje’s approach in the Pimblett fight was specifically tailored for Pimblett. He admitted would not use the same strategy against someone like Johnson.
“It’s always fascinating like how the way he moves. He wants to circle into power, but at the same time, he said he would fight me totally different because my footwork is so much better than Paddy Pimblett’s. And it makes sense,” Johnson said.
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“Sometimes in fighting you take those trade-offs where it’s like, okay, I’m going to circle into Paddy’s power because he can’t f*cking hit hard. He can’t kick hard.”
The newly crowned interim titleholder is expected to face Topuria later this year in a title unification bout. If Gaethje had his way, it would be at the UFC White House event in June.
