"I was in a little bit of trouble" - Justin Gaethje admits to being clipped but claims Michael Chandler 'did not touch him' after the first round of their UFC 268 fight
Justin Gaethje claims Michael Chandler could not land a single strike of significant importance following the first round of their main card opener at UFC 268. 'The Highlight' admits he 'was in a bit of trouble' after getting caught a few times in the first round but later had a field day inside the octagon.
This fan angle of the Gaethje vs Chandler fight 😍 https://t.co/OGDOJoBIL1
Gaethje said the only time Chandler was able to hit him after the first round was due to a blatant eye poke that the referee failed to notice. In a recent interaction with Jon Anik, Justin Gaethje weighed in on his barnburner with Michael Chandler at UFC 268.
"If you watch the fight closely, frame by frame, then you will understand he hit me in the first and I was in a little bit of trouble in the first. After the first round, he didn't touch me. Like, he hit me four times. One time was because the ref f***ed up beyond absolute belief. I can't believe nobody understands what happened there. If I would have got knocked out there I'm sure we'd be talking about it but for some reason it didn't even get brought up. But yeah, I feel amazing. You know when you win, you're successful out of a fight like that, you feel like a genius for a few days," Justin Gaethje said.
Watch Justin Gaethje's interaction with Jon Anik below:
Gaethje beat Chandler via unanimous decision in a potential title eliminator at UFC 268. Following the win, Gaethje is likely to fight the winner of the title fight between Dustin Poirier and Charles Oliveira next month.
"I bring the dog out of these dudes" - Justin Gaethje praises Michael Chandler for 'not giving up no matter what'
Justin Gaethje is happy to see Michael Chandler receiving praise from the MMA community for staying in the fight despite withstanding severe punishment over three rounds. He believes Chandler made the conscious choice of 'not giving up no matter what'.
Wow! Justin Gaethje vs Michael Chandler via the 𝗙𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗠𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 camera! 🔥
📺 youtu.be/CboQMFdemUk https://t.co/kNWYGrLGOY
Gaethje also took credit for bringing out 'the dogs' in fighters due to the aggressive manner in which he approaches fights.
"I'm so happy for Michael Chandler for all the praise he's getting because he deserves every bit of it. He made a choice, so many humans can learn from what happened. He made a choice and we all can make a choice at anytime and his choice was not to give up no matter what. I bring the dog out of these dudes," Gaethje said.