Justin Gaethje wasn’t happy with the UFC after getting passed up for the next title fight.
The former UFC Interim Lightweight Champion and BMF titleholder has won three out of his last four fights and recently rebounded from a devastating KO loss to Max Holloway with a near-finish of Rafael Fiziev at UFC 313 in March.
Ranked #3 in the world, Gaethje was left seething when it was announced that Charles Oliveira, not him, would be fighting Ilia Topuria for Islam Makhachev’s vacant lightweight title at UFC 317.
Justin Gaethje has fought for the undisputed title twice before, once against Oliveira, but feels he should’ve been next after beating Dustin Poirier and Rafael Fiziev (twice).
- READ MORE: UFC star explains why ‘more exciting’ Justin Gaethje didn’t get Ilia Topuria fight at UFC 317
Manager says Justin Gaethje might retire if he’s not given title fight
Weeks out from Topuria vs. Oliveira at UFC 317, Gaethje is looking for a guarantee from the UFC he’ll be next in line for the winner.
If Gaethje isn’t given a title shot, his manager Ali Abdelaziz says he will retire from MMA.
“They needed him, and he’s there,” Abdelaziz said of Gaethje in an interview with Submission Radio.
“The guy did so much for the sport. And if anyone said he doesn’t deserve it… he said, [if] I’m not gonna fight for the title, I’m just gonna hang up my gloves.
“[Justin] is a very principled guy, and he really told me this yesterday. He said, I’m not gonna get a title shot. I feel disrespected. I love being a UFC fighter. I love the UFC, but I feel that UFC has to love me back, and he doesn’t feel the love right now.
“At the end of the day, I think they love him,” Abdelaziz said of the UFC’s relationship with Gaethje.
“I think they will give him what he wanted. But at the end of the day, we have to see what happens first between Charles and Ilia.”
Justin Gaethje was on the cusp of a UFC title shot when he fought Max Holloway
After impressive back-to-back wins over Rafael Fiziev and Dustin Poirier in 2023, Gaethje thought he was next for champion Makhachev.
However, the narrative quickly changed in 2024 when UFC CEO Dana White billed a lightweight title eliminator between Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 300.
“You always think it’s going to go one way, and you can never guess what’s going to happen with the UFC,” Gaethje told Kevin Iole prior to UFC 300 (h/t: The Independent).
“Once the Oliveira and Tsarukyan fight got announced, I was really confident that I was going to get the Makhachev fight, because I figured: Obviously there is nobody else to fight him.
“I was under the impression that the fight with Dustin Poirier was as much a title eliminator as this Tsarukyan and Oliveira fight is…”
Instead of waiting for Makhachev’s return in the summer, Gaethje accepted a BMF title fight with Max Holloway on the same night as Oliveira vs. Tsarukyan in an effort to not get passed up for the title shot.
However, the gamble didn’t pay off for Gaethje. In the final seconds of round 5, Holloway brutally knocked out Gaethje right before the buzzer—delaying Gaethje’s title dreams once again.