“Once a coward, always a coward”- Justin Gaethje vows to make Charles Oliveira quit in their title match at UFC 274

UFC is back with its fifth pay-per-view event of the year and two titles are on the line. Lightweight champion Charles Oliveira will defend his belt against former Interim champion Justin Gaethje for the main event and for the co-main, Carla Esparza will go against the champion Rose Namajunas for the Strawweight title.

Charles is currently on a 10 fight win streak and will defend his belt for the second time. Oliveira successfully defended his belt against Dustin Poirier at UFC 269, he submitted Dustin in the early minutes of 3rd round and won via submission. Gaethje will attempt to secure the title for the second time after losing his first title fight against the former lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov via submission. Khabib, after winning the fight, announced his retirement from the sport.

This will be Charles’s 30th fight in the UFC and many believe that Justin can end his 10 win fight steak, however, Charles’ ground game is one of the best in the world and it might be a problem for Justin. In the UFC 274 press meet, Justin said he is planning to once again find the quit in Charles Oliveira. Justin also called Charles a Coward and said he might have changed, but he is still the same inside.

Justin said: “you know, all my criticism of Charles is from a kid that we were talking about that we all watch grow and now we’re talking about a man with confidence. It’s a different person but ultimately the same Charles is still there same,” he added, “you know once coward always coward, I’m not calling him a coward but I’m saying that you can’t just take that away.”

Watch the full interview:

Related: Justin Gaethje Offers Sneak Peek into Camp for Charles Oliviera Showdown

“Imagine calling him a coward”- Ariel Helwani reacts to Justin Gaethje’s statement about Charles Oliveira

The stage is ready and so are the fighters. Justin Gaethje is all ready to go toe-to-toe against Charles Oliveira on Saturday and claim the lightweight title. In the press meetup for UFC 274, Justin made various claims about Charles Oliveira and even went to an extent of calling him a “Coward.”

Justin also compared Charles to Khabib Nurmagomedov and said that Charles is not on the same level as Khabib. Justin said: “They’re definitely not the same athlete, and Charles certainly is not more dangerous than Khabib. His ability to take damage is not the same, proven through the times we’ve seen him fight.”

Reacting to this, sports journalist Ariel Helwani expressed his dissent. Ariel could not believe that Charles is still not taken seriously even after winning the lightweight title. Ariel tweeted: “The disrespect Oliveira continues to get is astounding. Imagine calling him a coward.”

Stay Updated!

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW