UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje said in an interview with Jim Rome that he “would love to punch Conor McGregor in the face.”
Gaethje defeated Ilia Topuria in a massive upset at UFC Freedom 250 on the White House lawn. While he has not fully decided if he will retire or fight again, he has said he is leaning towards stepping back into the Octagon, since he doesn’t feel a burning desire inside him to step away yet.
If he does fight again, then one opponent who could be in play is McGregor, who fights Max Holloway next month at UFC 329.
Should McGregor win that fight, then Gaethje says he is open to fighting him next.
Justin Gaethje Open to Conor McGregor Fight
Speaking to “The Jim Rome Show,” Gaethje admitted the thought of punching McGregor greatly interests him. To that end, Gaethje said he will be attending UFC 329 in person and watching McGregor and Holloway throw down in person.
“It is very, very difficult to even guess (how McGregor will look against Holloway), with how long he’s been out. I hope that — I’m sure that he’s committed enough time, 6-to-8 months for training for one of these fights. And again, fighting’s crazy, we have no idea what’s going to happen. They’re fighting at 170 lbs, so that makes it a little different. Max definitely knocked me out (at UFC 300), but I feel like I got that win back with the Ilia Topuria fight,” Gaethje said.
“I would love — as I’ve stated hundreds of times publicly — I would love to punch Conor McGregor in the face. So yeah, I’m excited about that fight. I’m excited to be there and watch it.
“There’s no doubt he’s one of the biggest superstars in the sport, so fighting a guy like that obviously does great things for me financially, and for my legendary status.”
Look for Conor McGregor to Call Out Justin Gaethje After UFC 329
Should McGregor defeat Holloway at UFC 329 in an upset, look for the Irishman to call out Gaethje for his next fight.
Although McGregor won’t deserve the opportunity to fight for the belt as much as top contenders like Arman Tsarukyan and Charles Oliveira would, he would be a much bigger name for Gaethje to fight, and, as he mentioned, he would have the new UFC lightweight champion in line to make a lot more money compared to some of the other contenders at 155 lbs.
We all know that the UFC is about booking the biggest fights possible, and sometimes, that means skipping over more deserving contenders to book the fights the fans want to see.
While both Tsarukyan and Oliveira have better resumes than McGregor has had, at least as of late, McGregor simply attracts more eyeballs.
With Gaethje likely only having one or two more fights in his MMA career before he hangs up his gloves, it makes more sense for “The Highlight” to maximize his time right now and fight the biggest cash cow available, which is McGregor.
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