Justin Gaethje predicts the winner of lightweight title fight between Dustin Poirier and Charles Oliveira
Justin Gaethje favors his former opponent Dustin Poirier to breeze past Charles Oliveira in a potential title fight.
Poirier, coming off a pair of huge wins over Conor McGregor, is likely to challenge Oliveira in his next outing. 'Do Bronx' won the lightweight championship in May earlier this year by defeating Michael Chandler at UFC 262.
During his appearance on the UFC 265 weigh-in show, Gaethje was asked who he thinks will come out on top between Oliveira and Poirier. 'The Highlight' said he believes Poirier will make the Brazilian "quit."
"I think Dustin Poirier is better (than Charles Oliveira). I think Charles Oliveira still has some quit deep down in him. Not even deep, it's pretty shallow. Michael Chandler showed it. Dustin Poirier will make him quit probably from being more hungry and (putting) more pressure. I want Charles Oliveira to show me he's not a quitter because nothing has shown me that," said Justin Gaethje.
Watch Gaethje's response below (from 1:53:50 mark):
Having fought Poirier in a four-round slugfest, Gaetjhe understands how devastating 'The Diamond' can be.
After his second win over McGregor at UFC 264, Poirier said he is ready to stake his claim to the lightweight title. He had previously snubbed the opportunity to compete in a championship fight, instead choosing to face the Irishman in a trilogy bout.
Justin Gaethje's next opponent will be Michael Chandler
Justin Gaethje is expected to fight Michael Chandler next. The exciting lightweight clash is rumored to take place at UFC 268 in November 2021. However, Gaethje added he wouldn't be too pleased with the UFC if they host the event in New York. The 32-year-old said he would instead prefer to fight in Texas.
Interestingly, Chandler also raised concerns about the fight being held at the Madison Square Garden, New York. 'Iron' hinted at potentially backing out of the fight since the state of New York has made vaccination mandatory to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Chandler's last UFC encounter was against Charles Oliveira at UFC 262. He lost the bout via TKO in the second round. Meanwhile, Justin Gaethje's last fight was against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254, where he was submitted by 'The Eagle.'