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MMA legend Daniel Cormier is all praise for Justin Gaethje ahead of the latter’s UFC lightweight title fight against reigning champion Charles Oliveira.
In the UFC 274 preview video on his YouTube channel, Cormier broke down the marquee UFC 274 matchups, including the Gaethje-Oliveira fight. 'DC' waxed lyrical about former WSOF (World Series of Fighting) lightweight champion Gaethje’s outstanding performances in the UFC. Revisiting Gaethje’s UFC debut – a second-round TKO win over Michael Johnson in July 2017 – Cormier stated:
“He [Gaethje] is hell on wheels for as long as the fight is going on. Now, Justin has had a number of fantastic performances. I think the one thing that you can never do is make that first impression better than what Justin Gaethje did when he fought Michael Johnson; got hurt, Michael Johnson was at the top of his game at the time. Ultimately, Justin broke him down and reminded everyone why he was so popular even though he was fighting in the World Series of Fighting.”
'DC' opined tha 'The Highlight' has since done several notable things to stay at the top of the UFC lightweight division. Cormier notably harked back to Gaethje’s impressive fifth-round TKO win over Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 in May 2020, which allowed him to secure the interim UFC lightweight title.
Additionally, Cormier highlighted that Gaethje won the first round on two of the three judges’ scorecards in his fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254 in October 2020. 'DC' insinuated that while Gaethje lost the fight via second-round submission, he gave Nurmagomedov one of his toughest fights ever.
Furthermore, Cormier lauded Gaethje for his incredible performance in his thrilling unanimous decision victory over Michael Chandler at UFC 268 last November.
Watch Daniel Cormier’s UFC 274 Preview in the video below:
Michael Bisping feels the pressure is on Justin Gaethje at UFC 274
The undisputed UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira is scheduled to defend his championship against Justin Gaethje at UFC 274 on May 7. This will be Gaethje’s second shot at the undisputed championship. ‘The Highlight’ failed in his first attempt to win it, losing to Nurmagomedov in 2020.
On BT Sport’s UFC 274 Preview Show, UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping addressed this and suggested that it would likely be difficult for Justin Gaethje to earn a third title shot if he loses to Charles Oliveira:
“He [Gaethje] knows that the pressure is on because he lost the world title fight against Khabib, right? Now, he’s getting a second shot. Third title fights, I don’t know if they come around, so a lot of pressure in this one.”
Watch the full breakdown below:
