Gaethje Declares Interim Title Clash with Pimblett a Championship Possibility, Vows to Disrupt Topuria-Pimblett Plans
LAS VEGAS - Justin Gaethje views his upcoming interim lightweight title fight against Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 as fully legitimate as a championship bout, and intends to derail potential future matchups, including a highly anticipated clash between Pimblett and current featherweight champion Ilia Topuria.
“Its no disappointment at all,” Gaethje stated at a press conference Friday. “Interim champion is the same as a champion, on paper, contract-wise.That’s what we fight for. This is my job, and it’s the biggest opportunity for me.” He added that the fight represents a significant moment for the newly combined UFC and Paramount platforms, predicting it will “gain massive fans for UFC.”
The bout was scheduled after uncertainty surrounding Topuria’s availability. Gaethje noted the UFC waited to see if Topuria would be ready to compete before finalizing the matchup with Pimblett.
This marks Gaethje’s second opportunity to claim the interim lightweight title; he previously secured the belt with a victory over Tony Ferguson at UFC 249. That win came as a result of circumstances similar to the current situation, stepping in when Khabib Nurmagomedov was unable to face Ferguson due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Gaethje sees parallels between that situation and his current challenge.
“Ultimately, this gets us paid as a champion, and it definitely gives me the chance to fight Ilia,” Gaethje said. “I want to fight Ilia. I want to play spoiler, just like I did with Khabib and Tony. I’m going to f*ck this up for everybody. There’s going to be no Paddy and Ilia. I’m going to do the same thing I did for that fight, and then I’m going to fight Ilia on the White House card, if he’s ready to fight again.”
UFC 324 is scheduled for January 24 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The event will also feature a women’s bantamweight title fight between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes.
