UFC 268: Justin Gaethje expects ‘balls to the wall’ clash against Michael Chandler in ‘title eliminator’
- ‘Nobody’s as explosive as [Chandler],’ insists former interim UFC lightweight champion
- Gaethje says defeat by Khabib Nurmagomedov ‘lit a fire’ under him – ‘there were things that needed correcting’
Justin Gaethje is hoping to earn a lightweight title shot when he takes on Michael Chandler on the UFC 268 main card this Saturday night in New York City – and ideally, dazzle the fans in the process.
The 32-year-old American Gaethje (22-3), regarded as one of the most exciting fighters in MMA, will step into the cage with Chandler (22-6) having not fought since he was submitted by Khabib Nurmagomedov in a failed bid for the 155-pound belt in October 2020.
From the sounds of it, the loss and subsequent lay-off have only made him better.
“When you take a loss, it lights a fire under your ass, so I‘ve been working, I’ve been making the right choices to put myself in the right position right here: to put myself in a title eliminator fight and to get that title shot,” Gaethje said at Wednesday’s UFC 268 media day. “There were things that needed correcting and I needed time to do that.”
Gaethje views his fight with Chandler as one of the most compelling of his entire career, and believes the result could come down to qualities like grit and strength of will.