Justin Gaethje vows to spoil Ilia Topuria vs. Paddy Pimblett plans: ‘I’m going to f*ck this up for everybody’

Justin Gaethje is here to play spoiler to the best-laid plans of the UFC.

Next month, Gaethje takes on Paddy Pimblett for the interim lightweight title in the main event of UFC 324. It’s a fight that came as a surprise to many, who expected lightweight champion Ilia Topuria would defend his title against either man, or possibly top contender Arman Tsarukyan. However, Topuria is taking some time off for personal reasons, leaving Gaethje and Pimblett to battle it out over the interim belt, but Gaethje views this as just as real as the undisputed title.

“It’s no disappointment at all,” Gaethje said at the “It’s On” seasonal press conference on Friday. “Interim champion is the same as a champion, on paper, contract-wise. That’s what we fight for. This is my job, and it’s the biggest opportunity for me.

“I didn’t know a long time before they announced the fight that it was going to be Paddy. I think they were waiting to see if Ilia was going to fight. … Turns out, he’s going to sit down for a little bit.

“So Paramount, this is — they need a Michael Johnson vs. Justin Gaethje coming-out party. Paramount, UFC combining; this is a fight that everyone wants. We’re going to gain m***ive fans for UFC. Entertainment business, and I’m the most entertaining fighter in the world. And this guy is pretty close behind me. It’s going to be a hell of a fight.”

This will be Gaethje’s second interim lightweight title fight, as he won the same belt by beating Tony Ferguson at UFC 249. Originally, Ferguson was supposed to challenge then-lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in one of the most anticipated bouts in MMA history, but the COVID pandemic forced Nurmagomedov out of the matchup. Instead, Gaethje stepped in and handed Ferguson his first loss in six years, and he sees parallels to this bout with Pimblett.

“Ultimately, like I said, this gets us paid as a champion, and it definitely gives me the chance to fight Ilia,” Gaethje said. “I want to fight Ilia. I want to play spoiler, just like I did with Khabib [Nurmagomedov] and Tony [Ferguson]. I’m going to f*ck this up for everybody. There’s going to be no Paddy and Ilia. I’m going to do the same thing I did for that fight, and then I’m going to fight Ilia on the White House card, if he’s ready to fight again. We’ll see when he’s ready again.”

UFC 324 takes place on Jan. 24 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and also features a women’s bantamweight title fight between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes.