Watch: Justin Gaethje fighting, one-armed, undefeated, Nick Newell for the Lightweight title
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Nick Newell vs Justin Gaethje
Justin Gaethje is a huge name in the UFC right now. However, Justin Gaethje was not always a huge star in the sport. He made his debut in the UFC in 2017 but fought in the World Series of Fighting from 2011 to 2017. Justin became the lightweight champion of WSOF in 2013 and defended it 5 times before vacating the title and joining the UFC.
Justin beat Richard Patishnock in the fight round via TKO to win the WSOF lightweight title in 2013. His first title defense came against Nick Newell at WSOF 11. Nick and Justin were undefeated in their professional career prior to this fight. Nick is an inspiring fighter, born with congenital amputation. He has worked hard and earned himself a name in the MMA community. The fight started very competitive; Justin and Nick exchanged combinations of jabs and kicks and Nick even threatened a submission attempt.
However, Justin gradually took control and landed major power shots that slowed Newell down. By the end of the first round, Nick looked exhausted and Justin applied constant pressure and secured and knockout in the second round via a vicious uppercut. Justin scored some major shots to the head and body, which slowed Newell down. Most of the second round comprised Gaethje loading up to throw one big strike at a time.
Nick Newell embarked on a journey to become the champ and joined Bellator MMA in 2019
Nick Newell and Justin Gaethje fought in 2014, and since then, their careers have changed a lot. After Justin’s victory at WSOF 11, Justin defended his title four times until 2017 and then vacated the title to join the UFC. Justin is currently the #3 ranked fighter in the lightweight division of the UFC and has fought for the lightweight title two times. Justin first fought for the title against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254, however, lost the fight via submission by Khabib. Gaethje recently fought for the title for the second time but again lost to Charles Oliveira at UFC 274.
Nick suffered his first professional defeat against Justin Gaethje and fought 2 more times in the WSOF before announcing retirement from MMA in 2015. Nick returned to the Octagon in 2018 and fought in the Legacy fighting alliance, and won the fight against Sonny Luque via a neck crank in the first round. Newell then fought in the Dana White contender series 14 but suffered a loss against Alex Munoz via unanimous decision.
Nick Newell signed a fight deal with Bellator in 2019 and fought his first fight against Corey Browning at Bellator 225. He won the fight via an arm triangle submission in the first round. Nick then signed a four-fight deal with Bellator and lost his next two fights against Manny Muro and Bobby King, respectively. Nick is currently signed with Bellator and last fought in July 2021.
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Sparsh Sharma
(196 Articles Published)