The Takedown | UFC: Justin Gaethje’s beat down of Tony Ferguson makes him favourite to finally upset undefeated Khabib
- The All-American wrestler emerged as a mature, skilled fighter who meticulously picked apart one of the toughest UFC competitors ever
- Gaethje, now fully rounded as a combatant, looks to capitalise on what will undeniably be a rusty Nurmagomedov this September
With the whole world still mostly cooped up in their homes, and no other sports to compete with for viewers, Justin Gaethje sent out a definitive statement during UFC 249 in Jacksonville, Florida. A war cry that he wants to be the one to unseat the king and knock a legend of the sport from his perch.
Khabib Nurmagomedov’s 28-fight win streak, which has culminated in 12 straight UFC victories, is an impressive run to say the least. But this September, when UFC president Dana White has promised Gaethje a lightweight title shot and a chance to defeat a perfect fighter, we will see history in the making. It will be an upset, but when the dust settles, I’m sure we will all be able to see the writing was on the wall.
Why, you say, should we bet on the rapscallion Gaethje, and not Nurmagomedov, 31, a long-standing champion who has already dispatched pretenders to the throne such as Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor?
Well, if you watched UFC 249, you know why. The Arizona native Gaethje, a wrestler by trade, went toe to toe with Ferguson, a fighter who also had a 12-fight win streak going.
Gaethje’s win was impressive because he emerged as a mature, wholly rounded fighter who has clearly learned from past mistakes. Previously he’s been known to attack too quickly after seeing his opponent show signs of weakness, finding himself caught trying to end a fight too early, and lacking energy when it eventually carries on.
At UFC 249 he made no mistakes: he was calm after getting punished by Ferguson’s leg kicks early on, and rebounded from being knocked down by an uppercut to end the second. The old Gaethje would have either come out too hard in the third, or been thrown mentally, and in turn, made mistakes. But what we saw in Jacksonville was the emergence of a new man: Gaethje the veteran fighter.
