Justin Gaethje once again proved he is arguably the most exciting fighter in the UFC when he vanquished Edson Barboza in the main event of UFC on ESPN 2 on Saturday night.
Gaethje lived up to his nickname by delivering yet another thrilling, highlight-reel knockout when he torched Barboza with a crushing right hook to the jaw. The punch sent Barboza, one of the fiercest strikers in all of MMA, flat onto his back, completely removed from consciousness.
But it wasn’t a walk in the park for the Genesis Training Center star. He was rocked a few times by Barboza punches and his leg was battered early from the Brazilian’s shins.
“That son on a gun kicks hard,” Gaethje said immediately following his spectacular triumph in Philadelphia. “My leg’s going to be sore tomorrow. This is the toughest sport on Earth and the best show on planet Earth. I would not recommend this sport to my enemy. I was born and raised to do this.”
Since Gaethje didn’t absorb a ton of damage in his battle with Barboza, he’ll be able to rebound quickly and continue his march toward the lightweight title. Gaethje doesn’t currently have an exact date in mind for his next Octagon appearance.
“We’ll see. I don’t call the shots,” he said. “I show up, I fight. I’m prepared anytime. I don’t rush things when I’m not in training camp. I need at least eight weeks, 10 weeks to be prepared. That’s how I work.”
After suffering back-to-back losses following possibly the single greatest debut fight in the promotion’s history, “The Highlight” has rebounded greatly. The Arizona native has reeled off two consecutive knockout victories and has a mission: he wants to systematically bring down every man standing in his way, one at a time.
“It’s onto the next one,” a determined Gaethje stated. “There are five or six guys in front of me. I want each and every one of them.”
The question is, who does he want to fight next?
“I don’t care,” he said during the post-fight media scrum. “It doesn’t matter to me. They’re going to pay me a lot of money. That’s what I’m here for. I want to be champion. I want to fight Khabib; I think I’m one of the biggest threats to his title and that’s my goal. Whoever I have to go through.”