21-05-2025
Jon Anik says Justin Gaethje 'was pissed' about being passed up for UFC 317 title fight
Jon Anik says Justin Gaethje 'was pissed' about being passed up for UFC 317 title fight
According to Jon Anik, Justin Gaethje was more than disappointed to not be part of the vacant UFC lightweight title fight.
With Islam Makhachev relinquishing his title for a move up to 170 pounds, Ilia Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) and Charles Oliveira (35-10 MMA, 23-10 UFC) will battle for the vacant belt on June 28 in the UFC 317 main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+).
Prior to Makhachev moving up, Gaethje (26-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) appeared to be in the running for a title shot, which is why "The Highlight" is not happy to be left out of the equation.
"He was pissed," Anik said on his "Anik & Florian Podcast." "He feels like certainly he was passed over in favor of Charles Oliveira for this opportunity against Ilia Topuria, and I think what Justin Gaethje and his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, are looking for is just some sort of guarantee that they will be next because it's May 19, and the good news for this Topuria-Oliveira fight is that it's f*cking June 28, it's less than six weeks away.
"So I don't think it's a crazy request for Justin, having done what he did against Rafael Fiziev, staying on the fight card, not fighting Dan Hooker, getting a win, distance from the UFC 300 result – and by the way, he fought at UFC 300 to help the UFC when he could have fought for the undisputed championship at that point in time. So, yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if Gaethje gets some sort of guarantee that he's next for the Topuria-Oliveira winner. But I can just tell you that Justin was not thrilled."
In a recent interview with MMA Junkie, manager Ali Abdelaziz said Gaethje should wait and fight the winner of Topuria vs. Oliveira.
