#1 Lightweight contender Justin Gaethje made quite the bold statement during his interview with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto. Gathje is coming off a loss to the now “retired” Khabib Nurmagomedov after being submitted by the current Lightweight champ in the second round at UFC 254. Now, Gaethje is making it clear that if McGregor gets a shot at the Lightweight belt he might just leave the UFC.

“He isn’t going to fight me, he just got his legs kicked off, I kick legs better than anybody in the UFC.” – Justin Gaethje

Justin Gaethje a fan favorite in the UFC. The 22-3 fighter puts on a show every time he enters the octagon, but he made it clear he’s leaving if Conor gets a title shot. McGregor does not deserve another shot at the belt and needs to work his way up again. Poirier had to wait SIX YEARS for another shot at McGregor so why shouldn’t Conor wait? Listen, I know McGregor is a superstar, but there’s plenty of other fights for him at 155 and 170. Let someone else fight for the title. Here’s the full quote from Gaethje…

“For them to come out and say he wants a title shot next, rematch with Poirier, they’re fucking idiots. That event was for him, it was for him to win. He wants to be ‘Mr. Humble’ now, but you know he would have been an asshole had he won that fight. He’s not fighting for a title. I will think about never fighting in the UFC again if he fights for a title. That would be preposterous. He’s sitting at No. 6, he’s won one fight in his entire life in the lightweight division. He picks and chooses who he fights. I would love to fight him but I don’t think it should be next. But he ain’t gonna fight me.”

Justin Gaethje on ESPN

Gaethje and McGregor have had a feud for years, but if there’s any time to book Gaethje vs McGregor it is definitely NOT now. Sure, if the UFC wants to lose one of its biggest stars then book Justin vs Conor, but let’s be honest Gaethje would use his legs kicks to make sure McGregor can’t walk out of the octagon. You know what fight needs to be book? Chandler vs Gaethje. Oh, and rebook McGregor vs RDA. Add Felder vs Hooker 2 in there too. Oh, and book Oliveria vs Poirier too for the title. I am now the new UFC matchmaker.

Regardless, this just adds more fuel to the Lightweight division. It’s going to be an interesting year for the 155lb division.