“All four of us got a chance,” Justin Gaethje plans to stand out among Max Holloway, Charles Oliveria, and Arman Tsarukyan for title shot

With the historic UFC 300 card right around the corner on April 13th, many new hash-outs are shaping up. The promotion has come up with quite a few bouts, and two of them are 155lbs affairs. UFC 300’s roster is already filling up with names like Justin Gaethje (and revert Max Holloway), and Charles Oliveira vs. Arman Tsarukyan. However, 25-1 lightweight king Islam Makhachev is still out of the picture. And Gaethje has weighed in on that, accordingly.

Speaking to MMA coverage journo Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports, Holloway recently nudged being down to run for both titles. Facing Gaethje for the “BMF” title, the fighter is making a move back to the 155lbs weight class after 5 years. This, thus adds another name to the crowded lightweight title contention picture, but Gaethje isn’t dismissing anyone yet. Speaking to Iole himself, here’s what he said –

Really confident that I was gonna get the Makhachev fight because I figured, obviously, there’s nobody else to fight him. He was tweeting that he wanted to fight me, but you know, I don’t know what’s going on. Maybe some injury or something....I was under the impression that if not for sure a title eliminator that the fight with Dustin Poirier was as much a title eliminator as the Tsarukyan and Oliveira fight is...Now, me fighting on the same card as those guys, I’m gonna be obviously above them, all four of us, me, Max, Tsarukyan, Oliveira, we all got a chance to stand out.

Justin Gaethje via Yahoo Sports

With a win over Dustin Poirier at UFC 291, Gaethje has surmised having earned the #1 contender’s spot. Superseding expectant rival Oliveira and rising prospect Tsarukyan, Makhachev himself called out and forwarned Gaethje. But with the Dagestani incurring a supposed injury, the hopes of title contention are far off now.

Makhachev was to face Oliveira at UFC 294, but the latter had to pull out due to the injury. With the title rematch thus getting suspended, the champion does not favor another rehash at all. In fact, despite favoring Gaethje, Makhachev dismisses all of them while he is in power.

Islam Makhachev snubbed the chances of all his opponents, for a supposed title contention

#1 pound-for-pound 155lber Islam Makhachev is the fight to make, at all costs. His string of challengers have included  Charles Oliveira, Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, and even rising contender Arman Tsarukyan. Lately, with Max Holloway returning to the weight class to fight for Gaethje’s “BMF” title, even one more name adds to the plethora.

Hollway is already a prominent name within the promotion. Gaethje, the heavy-hitter, recently divulged to Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports that he inadvertently gave shape to the BMF title contention with Holloway. This had thus gotten fans excited about the hardest chin vs. hardest hitter clashdown.

But another name in the list would not bother Makhachev, who has already dismissed the chances of all his opponents. Check out what the fighter tweeted back in December, on his surefire victory –

TKO COO and media executive Mark Shapiro recently let in on a $20 million site slot in Saudi Arabia for March this year. With ESPN’s Marc Raimondi and Dana White also prompting a Fight Night on March 2, fans were excited about Makhachev’s probable return.

But the Dagestani himself recently took fight fans by surprise, with his Madison Square Garden aspirations. Added to it is the fact that he is currently injured. There are thus no slated lightweight title contention bouts soon.

But if there was, Makhachev’s inclinations to surefire victory are prominently clear.

In case you missed it:

• “He doesn’t want to fight Charles Oliveira…” Islam Makhachev accused of ducking former rival after becoming lightweight champion
• “No way they were going to see that with naked eye,” Justin Gaethje recalls the ‘Towelgate’ situation with Max Holloway ahead of UFC 300

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