Gaethje seizes undisputed lightweight title as Topuria's corner stops fight in fourth round

Justin Gaethje is the undisputed UFC lightweight champion after Ilia Topuria’s corner stopped the fight following the fourth round at UFC White House, ending a contest the previously undefeated Topuria had publicly predicted he would finish inside two minutes.

Topuria came out aggressively in the opening round, but Gaethje not only survived the early storm — he began taking over the fight by the third. A sharp uppercut from Gaethje opened a cut around Topuria’s eye early in the bout, and the new champion noticed immediately that the blood was affecting his opponent’s focus.

“He’s such a pretty boy that he was so concerned about the blood immediately,” Gaethje said on the post-fight show. “I hit him with the uppercut, he’s bleeding and he started touching it over and over and over. He’s so f*cking dangerous. I don’t know how I stayed away from some of those shots. He definitely rocked me but I just kept telling myself to trust my abilities, not be emotional.”

Gaethje survived a late submission attempt in the second round before identifying a tactical shift he had been waiting for. “What I felt was in the third round, I kept jabbing the shit out of him,” he said. “The plan was do not lead with jabs until he finds his back foot. As soon as he finds his back foot, he’s not going to be as explosive. He’s not going to be as dangerous. He’s not dangerous off his back foot.”

By the fourth round, Topuria had absorbed enough punishment that his coaches intervened to prevent further damage. Gaethje, reflecting on the scale of the upset, was measured in victory but pointed to the starkest possible contrast between the two men’s post-fight situations.

“I am such a huge fan of this kid but where do you go from here?” Gaethje said. “It’s going to be a very tough climb back. I’ve never had the mindset he had. I never thought of myself as unbeatable or infallible. I said it from day one, I’m going to get knocked out with the way I fight, with how crazy this sport is. He was a world champion and I seized my opportunity to take it from him. But he is in the hospital right now and I’m not.”

Topuria entered the fight undefeated and ranked as the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC. Gaethje said he is unsure what comes next for him, but indicated a rematch with Topuria is not on his radar.