Oliveira warns Gaethje retirement clock is ticking ahead of UFC 335 title push

Charles Oliveira has suggested Justin Gaethje’s financial peak has already passed, warning the unified UFC lightweight champion that no future purse will replicate what he earned fighting on the White House lawn — and that retirement may be the logical next step.

Oliveira, who defends the BMF title against Diego Lopes in the UFC 335 main event on December 12, told MMA Fighting he believes a win over Lopes earns him a shot at the 155-pound belt regardless of whether Gaethje is still champion by then.

“I think that, without a doubt, he is not going to make more money in his next fight than he made at the White House,” Oliveira said. “The White House was a place everyone wanted to fight at, everyone wanted to be there. It had all that glamour, so he accepted the money for that fight. In other words, his next purse is not going to be that amount. It will definitely be a good amount, but not the amount he made at the White House.”

Gaethje stopped Ilia Topuria in June to unify the lightweight titles at the landmark event and has since indicated he will not compete again before the year is out. He has also publicly floated the idea of retiring as champion after 33 professional fights.

Oliveira said he understands the appeal of walking away on top. “I also understand his side of saying, ‘Man, I’ve already had great fights, I’ve built a great history, and wanting to retire,’” he said. “It’s up to him to understand what the next step is, whether now is the time to stop and retire. If he retires, he will receive a standing ovation. If he keeps fighting, he will certainly receive a standing ovation for the history he has made.”

With or without Gaethje in the picture, Oliveira is confident he would leapfrog Arman Tsarukyan in the contender queue after a win over Lopes — despite Tsarukyan holding a split decision victory over him from 2024. Tsarukyan recently strengthened his own claim with a first-round knockout of Mauricio Ruffy, but Oliveira argues his name value and his 2022 submission win over Gaethje give him the edge in any promotional calculation.

“If we’re going to talk about name value, I think I sell a lot more than Arman,” Oliveira said. “So I could move ahead of Arman. If Gaethje retires, there’s no other path to take. After this fight, it would definitely be me and Arman fighting for the title.”

Oliveira’s case rests on December 12, where a convincing performance against the rising Lopes would be difficult for the UFC to ignore in a division suddenly facing uncertainty at the top.