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Justin Gaethje (left), Rafael Fiziev (right) [Image courtesy of @rafael_ataman_fiziev on Instagram]

Justin Gaethje expresses happiness over bloodying Rafael Fiziev at UFC 286 

'The Highlight' Justin Gaethje lived up to his name as he and Rafael Fiziev brought the house down in UFC 286's Fight of the Night.

The bout pitted the No.3-ranked Gaethje against the No.6-ranked Fiziev, with both men pushing to make their claim for a shot at the title. 'Ataman', who headed into the bout on a six-fight winning run, started the better of the two as his speed and heavy shots prevented Gaethje from getting a read on him.

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As the fight continued, Justin Gaethje showed his experience by upping the output as almost every shot he landed appeared to cut the face of Rafael Fiziev.

The final round proved to be Gaethje's best of the night, as he repeatedly bloodied Fiziev's face, securing the round and the fight.

#UFC286 Official Scorecard: Justin Gaethje (@Justin_Gaethje) vs Rafael Fiziev

All Tonight’s Scorecards ufc.com/news/official-…
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'The Highlight' had his hand raised via majority decision and later sat down with the press to answer questions. Asked about his performance, Gaethje stated that he was happy that the only blood Rafael Fiziev tasted was his own:

"He wanted to taste my blood, but unfortunately he was drowning in his blood. I'm happy about that."
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He added:

“I look pretty good, so I did a good job, I did a good job...The key is not to get hit, and I did a good job at that. I took a couple of shots. I say two or three to the head. I asked and prayed that neither of us sustained chronic injury."

Justin Gaethje discusses his next opponent

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After his stunning performance at UFC 286, Justin Gaethje stated that he's planning on only having one more run at the lightweight title before calling time on his MMA career.

'The Highlight' was then asked about who he'd like to face next when he sat down with the media at the UFC 286 post-fight press conference. Gaethje admitted that he's eyeing up the loser of Charles Oliveria vs. Beneil Dariush, but would rather face the Brazilian to avenge his loss to him at UFC 274:

"I fought someone below me, and I 100 percent believe that I deserve to fight someone in front of me...The loser of the Oliveira-Dariush fight. I rather not fight Dariush, I love that dude. I do believe he’s going to beat Oliveira. I fought like a complete idiot when I fought Oliveira, so I would love to have that fight back. But Dustin [Poirier] is as good of an option.”
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Catch Gaethje's full post-fight comments below (2:20):

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Edited by
Harvey Leonard
 
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