Justin Gaethje was on the wrong end of one of the most iconic and brutal one-punch knockouts in UFC history. And you know what? Maybe that's just how it was meant to be.
That moment, of course, came April 13, 2024 at UFC 300 during his BMF title fight against Max Holloway. When the 10-second clapper sounded in the fifth round, Holloway, who had spent most of the fight piecing up Gaethje with his striking, pointed to the center of the cage for one final throwdown. The flurry of punches culminated with Holloway landing a huge right hand that instantly slept Gaethje and sent him crashing to the canvas head first with one second remaining, giving fans a highlight for the ages.
Nearly two-and-a-half years and three fights later, Gaethje (28-5 MMA,
11-5 UFC) is now the UFC lightweight champion after delivering a beating to Ilia Topuria and making him quit on the stool for a shocking upset this past June at UFC Freedom 250. Claiming an undisputed UFC title came after two previously failed attempts and was the culmination of nearly two decades of exciting fights, which has him feeling a certain way about his career.
“To be quite honest, I do feel like I have fulfilled my legacy,” Gaethje said in an interview with CBS Sports.
And as far as Gaethje is concerned, the devastating loss to Holloway was simply a necessary part of his long journey to the top.
“I think that Max Holloway fight was a huge building block to the person and the legacy that I've built," Gaethje said. "Without that, this win (over Topuria) wouldn't have been as special, especially with Ilia beating him, knocking him out and then me going in there finding success. I couldn't write it any better.”
The question now is what's left to be written. Gaethje, 37, recently revealed he's still dealing with hand injuries from the Topuria fight and remains open to the idea of retirement.
"I still need to continue to fill out the pros and cons (of retirement), but ultimately I am in the fight until I'm not in the fight," Gaethje said. "Inside me, I feel like the potential is as it's always been. But I really rely on my team and my family to make these choices. When I will retire, I have no idea. How many (fights) I have left, I have no idea. It's been one at a time since Day 1. I'm gonna continue to take it like that and trust in my team to have a conversation with me when they need to."
Last month, Gaethje's manager, Ali Abdelaziz of Dominance MMA, told MMA Junkie that Gaethje wouldn't retire but that he seeks only "massive fights" moving forward.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: How iconic UFC 300 knockout loss helped fulfill Justin Gaethje's legacy
