In 2020, Justin Gaethje unsuccessfully fought for the UFC lightweight title. He faced a wrestler in Khabib Nurmagomedov and lost via submission. This weekend, he looks to redeem himself against another fighter who emphasizes wrestling in Charles Oliveira.
Oliveira was going to defend his lightweight title against Gaethje at UFC 274 on Saturday at the Footprint Center in Phoenix. After missing weight, he has been stripped of the title, and only Gaethje can win it. Gaethje last fought in November, winning a hard-hitting bout against Michael Chandler at UFC 268. He is taking a different approach vs. Oliveira.
In an interview with The Sporting News, Gaethje discussed working with UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, a former NCAA Division I wrestler, to prepare for Oliveira.
"Wrestling cardio, boxing cardio, kickboxing cardio; they are all very different things. In order to grapple and wrestle . . . a college wrestling match is seven minutes. I'm competing in 25-minute fights. It kind of expands my confidence and my ability not to be dominated through 10 minutes of grappling. In order to do that, I’ve got to put the time in," Gaethje said.
MORE: Sign up to watch the UFC 274 PPV, exclusively on ESPN+
"I'm doing a lot of light rounds with different partners. I also have a couple of jiu-jitsu guys here now doing those rounds. All to gain confidence and cardio," he added.
Gaethje made his MMA debut in 2011. He won the World Series of Fighting lightweight champion prior to moving to the UFC. All but one of his wins in the UFC have been via some form of knockout. "The Highlight" is coming off a violent affair against Chandler that he won via unanimous decision to secure his status as contender.
Now he's going against Oliveira, who is 20-8 with one no-contest in the UFC and is on a 10-fight win streak. He is known to battle back, as he did in his last two fights vs. Chandler and Dustin Poirier. He averages 2.5 takedowns per 15 minutes and has landed four in his last three bouts, which makes him the closest to Nurmagomedov among Gaethje’s opponents.
Gaethje believes that a number of insights he gained from the Nurmagomedov fight will help make Saturday's bout a different contest.
"Specifically, the last kick that I threw that he (Nurmagomedov) got taken down with wasn’t a very well-timed kick," Gaethje said. "I didn't pick my shot as well as I could have. I need to. Outside of that, this fight is nowhere near the same. For one, we are fighting in the United States. Abu Dhabi, they didn’t have the same water, the same food, and the time was not the same. If you were a creature of habit, you were f—ed. That's the biggest difference between that and this fight."
MORE: UFC 274 odds, expert picks, predictions, betting trends for Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje
Usman is one of Gaethje’s teammates, along with Rose Namajunas, the UFC women's strawweight champion. Namajunas will face Carla Esparza on Saturday in a rematch from years ago. Gaethje and Namajunas were on the UFC 268 card, and they, along with Usman, combined to go 3-0. Gaethje credits them and trainer Trevor Wittman for shaping him.
Gaethje has handed out a lot of damage in his career. He also has taken some. Mixed martial arts can be very unforgiving. For this fight, he has a plan in place to keep himself together, internally and externally. He made some interesting comparisons to sports outside of MMA when discussing health and safety. What he does makes a difference when preparing for a fight and what comes after.
"I pretty much live in isolation," he said. "I live in my house by myself, I go work out two times a day, I come back, I focus on my nutrition, and I focus on rest. I sleep nine to 9 1/2 hours every night, I have a chef, a cold tub, a sauna, a treadmill. If I do have an injury, I’ll take the time to recover. That’s the one thing we're blessed with. I fight twice a year, so any injury I get from a fight, even a concussion, I'm out 30 to 60 days and taking no shots. That's the biggest difference between us and football players. They get concussions, traumatic brain injuries, and are back on the field in 15 days for another game, taking those same shots.
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"It's the same thing with boxers. They get dropped in the second round. The swelling and bleeding starts, but they continue to fight for another 10 rounds, 30 minutes, and continue to take shots. That’s something that's not a part of my sport. My sport is not as dangerous as boxing or football. If you take the proper care, it can be done for sure. I also haven’t had a tough fight since I fought Poirier. I haven't taken a lot of damage in a fight. I've changed my whole mindset when it comes to a fight. It’s more defensive. That's the biggest factor."
When is UFC 274: Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje?
- Date: Saturday, May 7
- Start time: 6 p.m. ET
- Prelims: 8 p.m. ET
- Main card (PPV): 10 p.m. ET
- Main event: 12:15 a.m. ET (approx.)
UFC 274: Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje takes place Saturday, May 7. The early prelims kick off the event at 6 p.m. ET. The prelims will begin at 8 p.m. ET and the main card will start at 10 p.m. ET. Oliveira and Gaethje should make their way to the Octagon around midnight ET, depending on the length of the undercard bouts.
Click here to learn about the different pricing and bundling options with the ESPN+ platform.
How to watch UFC 274: Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje
- TV channels: ESPN+, ESPN Deportes
- Live stream: ESPN+
The main card for UFC 274 is available in the U.S. and Mexico on the ESPN+ subscription streaming service for a pay-per-view cost. That portion of the event begins at 10 p.m. ET.
Earlier fights are viewable live on ESPN+, the WatchESPN app and, for the early prelims, on UFC Fight Pass.
In Canada, the main card pay-per-view is available on Bell, Rogers, Shaw, SaskTel, Videotron, Telus, Eastlink and UFC PPV on UFC Fight Pass.
In the United Kingdom, the main card will be available on BT Sport 1, with the prelims available on UFC Fight Pass.
In Australia, the main card will be on Main Event, Fetch TV, and UFC PPV on UFC Fight Pass.
Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje price: How much does UFC 274 cost?
- $74.99 (current ESPN+ subscribers)
- $99.98 (new subscribers)
In the U.S., the UFC 274 main card is available via pay-per-view on ESPN+, which also requires a subscription. The PPV price for UFC 274 is $74.99 for current subscribers. New subscribers can pay a bundle price of $99.98 for the UFC 274 pay-per-view and an ESPN+ annual subscription, which offers savings of more than 30 percent.
| Product | Prices |
|---|---|
| ESPN+ Monthly Subscription | $6.99/month |
| ESPN+ Annual Subscription | $69.99/year |
| The Disney Bundle w/Hulu Ad-Supported | $19.99/month |
| The Disney Bundle w/Hulu No-Ads | $13.99/month |
| UFC PPV Standalone | $74.99 each |
| UFC PPV Package (UFC PPV & ESPN+ Annual) | $99.98, then $69.99/year |
| UFC PPV & The Disney Bundle | $88.98, then $13.99/month |
UFC 274 fight card
Main card (10 p.m. ET)
- Charles Oliveira vs. Justin Gaethje for the UFC lightweight title
- Rose Namajunas (c) vs. Carla Esparza for the UFC strawweight title
- Michael Chandler vs. Tony Ferguson; lightweights
- Mauricio Rua vs. Ovince Saint Preux; light heavyweights
- Donald Cerrone vs. Joe Lauzon; lightweights
Prelims (8 p.m. ET)
- Randy Brown vs. Khaos Williams; welterweights
- Macy Chiasson vs. Norma Dumont; featherweights
- Brandon Royval vs. Matt Schnell; flyweights
- Blagoy Ivanov vs. Marcos Rogerio de Lima; heavyweights
Early prelims (6 p.m. ET)
- Francisco Trinaldo vs. Danny Roberts; welterweights
- Tracy Cortez vs. Melissa Gatto; flyweights
- Kleydson Rodrigues vs. C.J. Vergara; flyweights
- Ariane Carnelossi vs. Loopy Godinez; strawweights
- Journey Newson vs. Fernie Garcia; bantamweights
- Andre Fialho vs. Cameron VanCamp; welterweights
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