"Usually you have to lose to fight him" - Justin Gaethje scoffs at Conor McGregor's callout following KO win over Dustin Poirier
Justin Gaethje's victory over Dustin Poirier at UFC 291 was followed by a callout from none other than Conor McGregor. Gaethje was crowned the BMF title holder after his win, but 'The Notorious' took to Twitter to claim himself as the "real BMF".
McGregor has been expected to face Michael Chandler upon his UFC return, but he appeared to dismiss 'Iron' as a possible opponent in his recent Twitter rant.
Justin Gaethje's incredible head kick KO over Dustin Poirier was eerily similar to that of Leon Edwards' knockout of Kamaru Usman at UFC 278. But unlike Edwards, head kicks aren't part of Gaethje's usual arsenal of attacks.
'The Highlight' is known for his devastating leg kicks, and has recorded three KO wins via leg kicks in his career. But his win over 'The Diamond' was his first ever head kick KO.
During the post-fight press conference Justin Gaethje was informed of Conor McGregor's callout, and the new BMF champion appeared less than interested in a potential "red panty night". He said this:
"I think [McGregor] has turned me down six times. And usually you have to lose to fight him, so I don't know what's going on."
Watch the video below from 3:00:
Justin Gaethje's back-to-back wins over Rafael Fiziev at UFC 291, and Dustin Poirier this weekend, saw him earn Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night respectively.
The Highlight' has firmly reasserted himself into lightweight title contention, and will be paying close attention to UFC 294 main event between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira.
Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje share a touching moment backstage following UFC 291
Justin Gaethje defeated Dustin Poirier at UFC 291 in stunning fashion to lay claim to the BMF title. 'The Highlight' made things 1-1 with Poirier, who defeated Gaethje at UFC on Fox 29 in 2018. Now, the possibility of a third fight between the pair will have fans buzzing.
The respect that both men have for one another was evident on fight night, as Gaethje stated during his post-fight interview that Poirier was his favorite fighter.
Following their clash, a touching moment was captured backstage where the pair shared praise for each other whilst reflecting on the fight.
Poirier said this:
"You're a bad motherf***er bro. I didn't see it, I didn't see the kick! Congrats man, I'm proud of you dude. You worked hard for this."
Gaethje responded with:
"We both did, we both did. That's what we do. We're warriors. Let's hang out, I'm serious."
Watch the video below:
Trilogy on the ping pong table!? 🏓
@Justin_Gaethje and @DustinPoirier link up backstage after #UFC291 pic.twitter.com/iZ7LCOIMUv