UFC 249: Justin Gaethje Explains Why he Quickly Discarded Interim Belt

After stopping Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 to secure the lightweight interim belt, Justin Gaethje was quick to the belt off. So why did the decorated fighter do so? Following the biggest and most impressive win of his career?

Gaethje explains why he took off the interim belt

Heading into UFC 249, most people understood that Gaethje was going to be a serious test for Ferguson. But, on account of the latter’s abilities, which had delivered him 12 straight wins, the consensus was that “El Cucuy” would be victorious.

Well, if you watched last night’s card, you know that Gaethje bested Ferguson in many of the striking exchanges. The former WSOF champ repeatedly landed punishing punches, and in round five, the referee stopped a battered Ferguson from taking any more damage.

After UFC President wrapped the interim belt around Gaethje’s waist, he quickly took it off. When asked about why he didn’t keep it on, during the post-fight press conference, “The Highlight” said this (quotes via MMA Fighting).

“That’s the competitor in me,” Gaethje said. “That’s the mindset I have to have to face the challenge that is Khabib.

I can’t think of myself as the champion because for one, I’m not and for two, Khabib’s still there. So again, I can’t become complacent.

“It’s always the first fight. People think they’re infallible. That’s what will kill you in this sport. My lights can turn off, I’m human. I have a brain.

As soon as you shake it, I will go to sleep. I almost did at the end of the second. But the good thing is I’m fighting humans and so I just perform.”

If you’ve followed Gaethje in recent years, then these comments shouldn’t come as too big of a surprise. The ridiculously, dangerous fighter has typically been pretty reserved following big wins.

That said, after what he did last night, you certainly couldn’t have blamed him if he had been more exuberant about the win.

Gaethje acknowledges the extra time helped

Initially, Gaethje agreed to step-up on extremely short notice last month and fight Ferguson on April 18th. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, however, the event was pushed to last night.

So, on account of that, Gaethje had a couple more weeks to prepare for the bout. When asked about how much the extra time helped him prepare for UFC 249, Gaethje said this.

“It was extremely important not only for my cardiovascular system, but for my mental preparation,” Gaethje said. “I go in there and I go to a special place.

Not many people can go to my special place with me. But it takes time to prepare for that mentally. So yeah, it was critical.”

Pretty understandable. Now the MMA world will wait to see when and where Gaethje will fight the champ, Khabib Nurmagomedov.