And what a task it is. Aside from being the lightweight champion, Nurmagomedov is the second-ranked pound-for-pound fighter in the world and many fighters currently view Nurmagomedov as the most dominant athlete in MMA. But despite all of Khabib’s accomplishments, Gaethje has a very simple plan for how to beat him come October 24th: make him bleed.
“I have a really, really good belief that’s he’s gonna have a really hard time putting me on the fence,” Gaethje told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto recently. “I know I’m going to see his blood. I want him to see his blood and I want to see his reaction.”
“I don’t think he’s as crazy as me, that’s the thing. I think he is crazy and loves competition, but he isn’t quite as crazy as me. He also hasn’t seen his blood as many times, I’m sure. His style of fighting is not something where you are looking for blood or anything like that. I bet that doesn’t even cross his mind that he will see his own blood. That has never been a factor for him.”
Gaethje isn’t all the way wrong there. In his professional career, Nurmagomedov has been perfect, amassing a 28-0 record, 12 wins of which have come inside the octagon. On top of that, Nurmagomedov had never lost a round until the third round of his bout with Conor McGregor, a fight he ended by fourth-round submission. That level of dominance has created an aura of invincibility around “The Eagle” and Gaethje hopes to be the one to crack it. And should he do so, Gaethje admits it will be a life-changing occurrence for him and his family.
“With my family, with my life, with everything, there’s different kinds of wealth,” Gaethje said. “With a win here, I have a really good opportunity - it wouldn’t necessarily be generational wealth, but it would be a generation worth of wealth. So that’s something. Whether I win or lose, I’m gonna have my mom call her boss and tell her she’s retiring. . .
“It’s f*cking huge, man. There’s a certain amount of money I think one needs to attain in order to have the opportunity to grow exponentially, financially. I think a win over Khabib gives me that.”
A win at UFC 254 certainly would. Not only would Gaethje take out one of the most popular fighters in the sport, and become the undisputed lightweight champion, he would also be setting himself up for a lucrative fight with former champion Conor McGregor. It’s a fight the UFC previously showed some interest in making but one Gaethje was not interested in because he already had a title shot locked up. But should he defeat Khabib, it’s clear Gaethje would be interested in picking up where the UFC left off, both for financial and other reasons.
“Legacy. That’s why I’m most excited for this opportunity. I’ve watched this sport for a long time . . . I truly think that if I can beat Khabib and then beat Conor, I will have cemented something that is unmatched. Anderson Silva, I wouldn’t have matched his title reign. That title reign is something unmatched . . . but in a different regard, it will be much bigger. Khabib is the number one pound-for-pound (fighter) and you have to put it in context of me. Coming off those two losses, everyone was saying ‘He’s done.’ The fact that, the way I was fighting, we all loved it but there was absolutely not chance I was ever gonna fight for a world title. It will be a legacy that I came to cement.”
UFC 254 takes place on Oct. 24 on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi.
[h=1]MUST-READ STORIES[/h]Shade. Israel Adesanya still hasn’t watched ‘rat lip’ Khamzat Chimaev fight yet in the UFC.
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Champ-champ. Daniel Cormier emphatically endorses Khamzat Chimaev: ‘In 2021, he is the double champ’.
Weight cutting. HBO Real Sports details scary incidents with Nicco Montano, Uriah Hall during segment on extreme weight cutting.
Questionable. Charles Oliveira questions UFC’s decision to have Michael Chandler as backup fighter for Nurmagomedov vs. Gaethje.
[h=1]VIDEO STEW[/h]Between the Links.
Embedded 2.
Top women’s submission in Bellator.
City Kickboxing’s road to Fight Island.
[h=1]LISTEN UP[/h]The Bash. Interviews with Morgan Charriere, Graham Boylan, and Eugene Bareman.
UFC Unfiltered. Interviews with Johnny Walker and Mackenzie Dern.
[h=1]SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE[/h]Call out.
All due respect @Leon_edwardsmma , which I have a lot of for you, I have been saying I would like to fight you for a while now! It makes sense and would be a great match up.
I think that was my first Twitter call out ever. man that felt weird. #FirstTimeForEverything
— Stephen Thompson (@WonderboyMMA) September 22, 2020
Response.I think that was my first Twitter call out ever. man that felt weird. #FirstTimeForEverything
— Stephen Thompson (@WonderboyMMA) September 22, 2020
We fighting next lets go leave Leon alone https://t.co/iltFiK7Nrm
— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) September 22, 2020
Hmmm.— Khamzat Chimaev (@KChimaev) September 22, 2020
What time is it in London now? Leon still quiet! ??? ??? ??? ???
— GILBERT BURNS DURINHO (@GilbertDurinho) September 22, 2020
Respect.— GILBERT BURNS DURINHO (@GilbertDurinho) September 22, 2020
What an experience this past weekend. Fighting an idol is something I’ve always wanted to do. Wish I wouldn’t have gotten those dang eye pokes but I’ll do better! Can’t wait for next one. As always thank you all for the kind messages, I do read them #ufc #fighting #boxing #mma pic.twitter.com/XxD1U9D4lj
— Niko Price (@Nikohybridprice) September 22, 2020
Gilbert Burns mad about this very reasonable outcome.— Niko Price (@Nikohybridprice) September 22, 2020
U gotta be kidding me! I beat Woodley when he was N1, than Colby came watches my fight do what I did n now he ranks higher than me? He just beat the number 5 and a guy coming from 2 loses n without a soul!
Who does this Rankings? @danawhite send me the contract ASAP #AndNew pic.twitter.com/TqrqrMvqD5
— GILBERT BURNS DURINHO (@GilbertDurinho) September 22, 2020
Shots fired.Who does this Rankings? @danawhite send me the contract ASAP #AndNew pic.twitter.com/TqrqrMvqD5
— GILBERT BURNS DURINHO (@GilbertDurinho) September 22, 2020
Ok you would pick Adesanya vs Costa over the debates, but surely you pick the debates over Reyes vs Blachowitz right?
— Bionic Ben (@Benaskren) September 23, 2020
Feeling good.— Bionic Ben (@Benaskren) September 23, 2020
Pretty good posters.
View this post on Instagram
ON A WHOLE NEW LEVEL. Who leaves Fight Island as undisputed champs? Get your Artist Series merch on @UFCStore ( : @Rodrigo.Lorenzo.Art )
A post shared by ufc (@ufc) on Sep 22, 2020 at 1:33pm PDT
[h=1]FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS[/h]N/A.
[h=1]FINAL THOUGHTS[/h]Thanks for reading and see y’all tomorrow.
[h=1]EXIT POLL[/h]
If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let him know about it. Also follow MMAFighting on Instagram, add us on Snapchat at MMA-Fighting, and like us on Facebook.
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