White House card next?
By Jon Johnson
LAS VEGAS – After a brutal five-round war, Safford’s own Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje defeated Paddy “The Baddy” Pimblett via unanimous decision at UFC 324 on Saturday night to win the Interim Lightweight Belt.
With the victory, Gaethje (27-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC) became the first two-time Interim Lightweight champion and, at 37, the oldest as well.
Coming into the fight, the odds were on Pimblett, and the crowd was behind him, too. The fight was competitive throughout and bounced back from brief stoppages for accidental eye pokes and a knee to the groin.
Gaehje showed his prime form, however, and picked Pimblett apart in every round. Paddy showed that Scoucers do indeed not get knocked out, and absorbed the hits as he continued to strike toe-to-toe with Gaethje.
Near the end of the fight, Pimblett attempted to go to the ground twice but was thwarted. Pundits have said Gaethje is susceptible to wrestling, even though he was an NCAA All-American wrestler in college. On this night, it was Gaethje who used a front headlock from the ground around Pimblett’s neck at various points to keep control.
“I love being in that position,” Gaethje said. “They can’t wrap their legs around me. There’s no submissions they can get from there. And I can still punch them . . . I love being in that position. That’s wrestling.”
With Gaethje scoring numerous hits, some in the audience began to sway toward his side. Pimblett fought valiantly, however, and still had cheers as he stunned Justin a time or two.
While UFC CEO Dana White questioned Paddy’s tactics afterward during a press conference, the standup slugfest was just what Paramount+ ordered to introduce a new audience to the MMA world.
But in the end, the Fight of the Night went to Gaethje. Both fighters received $100,000 bonuses for fight of the night, but only Pimblett had to go to the hospital afterward.
Even with the loss, Dana White said he considers Paddy to be one of the elite fighters in the UFC.
“I don’t think that his game plan was the greatest, (but) obviously tonight he showed he is tough, he is durable,” White said.
The Lightweight Belt was up for grabs in the interim because champion Ilia Topuria took a leave of absence for personal issues. Gaethje is now expected to fight Topuria for a 155-pound unification bout – possibly on the upcoming event at the White House. In a post on X after the fight, Topuria congratulated Gaethje but then issued a stern warning: “I’d like to tell you to get ready, but you’re screwed no matter what,” Topuria wrote.
For his part, Gaethje is looking for nothing more than to tangle with Topuira on the White House card.
“There’s no way they’re keeping me off that card unless I’m dead. I can’t wait. It’s what I got here for. It’s what we do, and of course, I believe that’s what the next fight is unless he’s not back.”
