Las Vegas, NV — The BMF title will be on the line at UFC 300, in what is very much the “people’s main event” — but a whole lot more is up for grabs when Justin Gaethje and Max Holloway face off at the milestone event.
First off, there’s the bragging rights of becoming the first man to knock down former featherweight champ Holloway. “It would mean a lot,” Gaethje explained, speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press on Wednesday. “I have 25 wins, 19 knockouts. I’ve really taken pride in that since the beginning of my career. To be the first one, I like being first. So yeah, I’m ready.”
Then there’s the looming title shot that could be in the offing for the winner. “I know with a win here, I fight for the belt. I know with a loss, that goes away. That’s what I’m fighting for.”
Make no mistake, Justin Gaethje did not miss the memo on the Arman Tsarukyan vs. Charles Oliveira title eliminator. He just believes he understands the schedule that the lightweight division is following.
“There’s going to be two contenders coming out of this PPV: the winner of Tsarukyan and Oliveira is going to be a contender, and the winner of Holloway and myself is going to be a contender,” stated Gaethje. “I believe [Islam] Makhachev is going to fight at least twice this year, and so I think we’ll both fight him.”
As to when he might face champ Makhachev, assuming he is still the champ by the time any hypothetical title fight comes around, “I don’t play what ifs, but you don’t pass up a championship opportunity. I do want my time, I do think June would probably be impossible for me because every time I fight it’s a traumatic life experience,” Gaethje said. “I need to go home, I need to unwind, take care of my body, take care of my head. But I have coaches and a manager that ultimately make those decisions, so if they say go I go.”
There’s a sense that Gaethje vs. Holloway is a lock for Fight of the Night at UFC 300, with all others competing for Performance bonuses. That means something to the BMF champ.
“Having the respect of your peers is something I think we all shoot for. Not just that but the UFC to give me this opportunity. Every time you see someone in this thing, you only see the Gathje vs. Holloway thing on the television. So it looks like this is the main event.”
“The Highlight” is also hoping for better bonuses overall at UFC 300. The first UFC milestone, UFC 100, saw 100K bonuses. While 300K for UFC 300 might be a bit much, “we’re all making a lot more money now than UFC 100, so I think 100Gs is good for every finish on the card.”
In terms of where Holloway would rank when it comes to his legacy, meanwhile, “Tony Ferguson, Dustin Poirier, Cowboy Cerrone. These guys are all future Hall of Famers. It’s huge. It’s huge for my legacy, it’s huge for my resume. I’ve been watching this guy, I’m older than him but I was watching him way before I ever thought about being in the UFC. This is a guy that I looked up to, so it’s cool to see how far I’ve come and where hard work will get you.”
Watch the full UFC 300 media day appearance with Justin Gaethje above.
