Gaethje Toughest Fight for Makhachev
According to former Strikeforce Ace Josh Thomson
Josh Thomson, a former Strikeforce lightweight champion, thinks Justin Gaethje is the toughest fight for Islam Makhachev and can challenge him. Thomson predicted this outcome is Gaethje and the 155-pound champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship agreed to a match.
Recently, Makhachev (25-1) stated that he would want to fight Gaethje (25-4) as opposed to Charles Oliveira or Arman Tsarukyan again. Because of the subtle differences in their fighting styles, Thomson thinks Makhachev will face his greatest challenge in the division in “The Highlight.”
Gato_MMA on Twitter: “#MMATwitter @Justin_Gaethje supreme Takedown Defense 🔥 pic.twitter.com/0KYEQfbyF3 / Twitter”
MMATwitter @Justin_Gaethje supreme Takedown Defense 🔥 pic.twitter.com/0KYEQfbyF3
Thomson pointed out that Makhachev’s wrestling isn’t particularly traditional, but Gaethje is well known for avoiding the ring. Admittedly, the Dagestani prefers to practice sweeps and trips out of the clinch, where Gaethje can be quite lethal when breaking.
“I think Justin Gaethje is now giving him the hardest fight out of all of them. Thomson stated on the “Weighing In” podcast, “You say ‘no’ because of the wrestling, and I understand why you say no.” But I will say this: Islam can’t afford to stand in Justin’s pocket for too long because of his predisposition to do so occasionally, and his style of wrestling isn’t double-leg takedown.
“Justin’s not someone who sits in that clinch for too long. He’s good at breaking out of the clinch. He’s good at keeping you out of that clinch area and letting his hands go. Dirty boxing, uppercuts; he possesses the power to land the shot out of the break. He’s a dangerous fight for Islam. Very dangerous.”
MMA Junkie on Twitter: “Josh Thomson: Justin Gaethje ‘hardest fight’ for UFC champ Islam Makhachev right now https://t.co/qJnlfkXp7u pic.twitter.com/3zXQVsHxLn / Twitter”
Josh Thomson: Justin Gaethje ‘hardest fight’ for UFC champ Islam Makhachev right now https://t.co/qJnlfkXp7u pic.twitter.com/3zXQVsHxLn
In a 2020 UFC 254 championship unification matchup against Makhachev’s predecessor Khabib Nurmagomedov, Gaethje lost via submission. Thomson added that although Nurmagomedov was able to defeat Gaethje, “The Eagle” was renowned for his ability to avoid multiple vicious blows from the opponent. Thomson questions Makhachev’s ability to pay for flush shots from “The Highlight,” though.
Keep off the ground
“I’m saying that we’ve seen Justin can take it. He can deliver it. His only weakness in this fight is that if his back hits the ground, it could be over-quick. And I’m saying it will potentially hit there, but I say that if you’re going to look at who is the most dangerous fight for him, and we saw it with Khabib in the first round.
“Khabib took some big shots from Justin in that first round, and Khabib just walked him down. Islam’s not going to fight him that way. He can’t afford to fight him that way. Justin can’t afford to take the shot that Khabib took. He can’t, and he’s got to close that distance to get to that takedown.”