Justin Gaethje holds all the cards as UFC champion, but Daniel Cormier warns he should still be careful with how he chooses to close out his storied career.
At UFC White House this past June, Gaethje put on one of the most crowd-pleasing performances in MMA history, finishing Ilia Topuria in the fourth round to pull off a massive upset, ruin Topuria’s undefeated record, and finally lay claim to the undisputed lightweight title. Gaethje is currently weighing his options as he targets a championship defense in 2027, with clear-cut No. 1 contender Arman Tsarukyan coming off of a highlight-reel win over Mauricio Ruffy at UFC 331, and Topuria angling for a rematch. The 37-year-old Gaethje also has the option of walking away on top.
Cormier discussed Gaethje’s future on his YouTube channel and explained why he thinks Gaethje might have trouble figuring out his next move.
“When you look at JG and you look at him talking about his fighting, what the future looks like, and what he is going to do, there are a number of things that you have to really pay attention to,” Cormier said. “One, he’s 37 or 38. That’s getting up there in years, especially in that division.
“Also, we’ve got to go back to UFC Freedom 250, when in the build, Justin’s mom was very open about wanting him to be done with the fighting. It felt like, in the immediate aftermath of UFC Freedom 250, Justin was going to do what his mother asked and stop fighting, but then that thing that’s inside of him that makes him so special to so many starts to kind of tug at you. You see another great fighter have a great performance, you go, ‘Is that the guy?’”
Tsarukyan has done everything he can to mend a sometimes rocky relationship with the UFC and boost his profile outside of the octagon, moves made necessary by a last-second withdrawal from a title fight against Islam Makhachev at UFC 311 that damaged his reputation with fans and UFC CEO Dana White.
After knocking out Ruffy, Tsarukyan appears to have an airtight case for a title shot. The question is, does Gaethje care to give him the opportunity?
“He said he’s got the Arman door, if he ever wants to open it and fight that fight,” Cormier said. “Arman Tsarukyan at this point is a massive star. People love him for what he has done outside of mixed martial arts to make himself viable, but [Gaethje is] a big underdog in that fight. Probably bigger than he should be, especially after what people saw him do at UFC Freedom 250, but then the question becomes, as Justin said himself, he had the performance of his life.
“Can he replicate that again? Which he would need to in order to get past Arman Tsarukyan and does he even want to?”
Behind Door No. 2 lies Topuria, who made a claim to be MMA’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter after winning titles at lightweight and featherweight and knocking out legends Charles Oliveira, Max Holloway, and Alexander Volkanovski.
The question with Topuria is whether Gaethje believes he can top what he did in their first fight.
“Ilia Topuria as a second option,” Cormier said. “But again, that’s dangerous, because while Justin got the job done, there are moments where Ilia hurt him, and Justin, to his credit, has spoken about the fight, spoken about the game plan, and you would expect Ilia to go and try to fix the areas where he may have struggled. Justin said, his rhythm, his timing, and he was timing his stuff with his punches. … Ilia will go and improve that. He will go and fix that. I would like to see the odds for an Ilia Topuria rematch.
“Even that, if Justin did go down that path, to his point, what’s he got to prove? He beat him on the biggest stage that the UFC has ever been on. It doesn’t work. It doesn’t really seem like it would suit him.”
The most important factor in Gaethje’s decision could be how much the UFC is willing to pay for his services. Gaethje has done well for himself as one of MMA’s most popular fighters and has made sure to keep his bank account healthy with 17 post-fight bonuses in 16 UFC fights. For his UFC White House win alone, Gaethje earned an extra $825,000 for Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night.
As champion, Gaethje is presumably earning the biggest paychecks of his career, and Cormier understands the desire to maximize one’s earnings before hanging up the gloves. That said, chasing the next check is always a slippery slope.
“If he wins, then the money will just get bigger, and there will be that pull to come back again,” Cormier said. “It never stops. Because the way that the game works is the champion is supposed to go when his time is gone. When the time is gone, when his time is over, someone shows that champion the door. But if that champion still seems to have fight, money will come to you, and that draw—whether you do this for money or not—that draw is very hard to turn away from.
“There is no easy option for Justin Gaethje, because even in retiring, it’s hard. Even if staying and winning again, it’s hard, because there’s always going to be a pull to do it again.”
TOP STORIES
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Caution. Matt Brown calls frightening UFC Vegas 121 ending “the UFC’s worst nightmare.”
Sympathy. Jose Aldo has advice for old foe Conor McGregor after devastating knee injury.
Justice. Two face perjury charges in wake of McGregor civil case for sexual assault.
Worthy. UFC 332 headliner Wang Cong expected to receive a title shot sooner rather than later.
Sideshow? Chael Sonnen wonders if Dana White vs. Eddie Hearn is overshadowing Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua.
Results. First slam knockout in Contender Series history highlights Week 8 of Contender Series.
VIDEO STEW
Dana White scrum.
UFC 332 interviews with MMA Fighting’s José Youngs.
UFC 332 media day.
Anik and Florian talk Ki MMA.
Dan Hardy on Submission Radio.
Mighty Mouse wowed by Yoel Romero (just like the rest of us!).
UFC 332 Embedded.
FLAVOR IN YOUR EAR
Fighter vs. Writer. MMA Fighting’s Damon Martin and Matt Brown discuss the scary ending to Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Raoni Barcelos, and more.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
Contender Series contract announcement.
The best knockouts of the week.
For my Canadian peeps.
Is normal.
I’m hyped.
No.
It’s on.
Collector’s item.
RIP Mr. Belding.
Just saying.
Ok then.
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Jacobe Smith (12-0) vs. Bruce Whitehead (8-2); UFC 332, Oct. 3
Colby Covington vs. Khamzat Chimaev (wrestling); RAF Abu Dhabi, Nov. 14
Donte Johnson (9-0) vs. Cesar Almeida (7-3); UFC 334, Nov. 14
Jiri Prochazka (32-6-1) vs. Navajo Stirling (11-0); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Aljamain Sterling (26-5) vs. Kevin Vallejos (18-1); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Dan Hooker (24-15) vs. Brian Ortega (16-5, 1 NC); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Asu Almabayev (24-3) vs. Kyoji Horiguchi (36-6, 1 NC); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Jared Cannonier (18-10) vs. Ikram Aliskerov (18-2); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Aleksandre Topuria (7-1) vs. Santiago Luna (8-1); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Shamil Gaziev (15-3) vs. Tallison Teixeira (9-2); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Amir Albazi (17-3) vs. Alessandro Costa (17-5); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
Jake Matthews (23-8) vs. Tahir Abdullayev (20-3); UFC Qatar, Nov. 21
FEED ME MORE
Would have done wonders for Kevin Lee.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Imagine if Justin Gaethje had retired right then and there after toppling Ilia Topuria at UFC White House? Would have been one of the best sports moments of the century. It’s his right to do whatever he wants with his career, but man, all of the “will he, won’t he” we’ve had to deal with since and will have to deal with for the next little while… brutal.
EXIT POLL
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