Justin Gaethje was no fan of Daniel Cormier’s post-fight interview with Islam Makhachev at UFC 267.
Cormier, the former UFC double-champ who has spent the last several years serving as an analyst, was working the broadcast booth in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. Also handling post-fight interviews in the cage, he was tasked with speaking to victorious lightweight Islam Makhachev, who submitted Dan Hooker within a round to earn his ninth consecutive win.
Makhachev happens to be a teammate of Cormier at American Kickboxing Academy, and DC gave him the platform to state his case for a title shot. It seems Gaethje, a former UFC lightweight title challenger who came up short against Khabib Nurmagomedov last year, was no fan of that.
“Suck it harder,” he fired at Cormier on Twitter following the Makhachev interview.
Suck it harder @dc_mma
— Justin Gaethje 🇺🇸 (@Justin_Gaethje) October 30, 2021
Cormier, still working the broadcast, found the time to reply. “I can’t fight you, but Islam can my guy. You just go and do what you do next week. You may be safe I’m not sure champ.”
Gaethje (22-3) is set to face Michael Chandler at UFC 268 next week in New York City. One of the most violent men in UFC history, “The Highlight” is no doubt hoping for a title shot of his own with a strong showing in that fight.
Makhachev (21-1) has run up his nine-fight winning streak against increasingly difficult competition. This year, he has defeated Drew Dober, Thiago Moises, and now Hooker, all three via submission.
