Don’t count Justin Gaethje out of the lightweight title picture just yet, per UFC President and CEO Dana White.
Speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press following UFC 313 on Saturday, White addressed Gaethje’s co-main event turn against Rafael Fiziev. While Fiziev had a hot start, Gaethje scored a knockdown in round two, and battled all the way to the final bell for a decision victory.
“Great fight. I mean they won fifty grand for Fight of the Night,” White stated afterwards. “They stole it away from the first two kids of the night, they were looking like they were going to win it.”
Those “two kids” were Ozzy Diaz and Djorden Santos, the latter making his promotional debut, the former earning his first win under the UFC banner. Gaethje and Fiziev, however, was that much better. And it leaves Justin Gaethje at 3-1 across his last four bouts.
Is a title shot still possible? White thinks so. “I mean what’s he ranked right now, fourth or something right? Third? There you go, he’s still the number three ranked guy in the world. The odds of him getting a title shot are pretty good.”
With UFC and TKO Group taking on boxing and investing 10 to 12 million dollars in jiu-jitsu over the next year, Dana White is busier than ever. That opens up the question of whether or not he’s spread too thin, and how long he can keep up the pace.
“We’re going to find out this year. This year is going to be the- we’re going to find out this year. We’ll see,” White told Cageside Press. “See how long I can run this hard.”
Watch the full UFC 313 post-fight press conference with Dana White above.
