Tonight in Vancouver, Justin Gaethje put on one of the most veteran and mature performances of his career to defeat Donald Cerrone.
A continuation of the more refined brawling style we’ve seen from him of late, Gaethje’s output may have been lower, but his shot selection proved to be a difference maker, as he landed a peach of a right hand counter that sent Cerrone loopy.
From there, Gaethje landed another shot, and the end was a formality. In one of the more endearing moments you’ll see in MMA, he and Cerrone embraced following the contest, and spent a majority of their post-fight interview praising each other and talking of their friendship.
Now, with a series of impressive wins under his belt, Gaethje called for his shot at the UFC lightweight champion, whether it be Tony Ferguson or Khabib Nurmagomedov (providing that contest is booked for Nurmagomedov’s belt next).
“I want the winner of Tony [Ferguson] and Khabib [Nurmagomedov]. I want to fight Khabib before he’s gone and if Tony wins, nobody’s going to miss that fight,” he said in the Octagon immediately after the bout.
"This kid's a stud man." #UFCVancouver pic.twitter.com/3ph2YV7r2V
— UFC (@ufc) September 15, 2019
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