A pair of Colorado fighters are headlining the UFC’s 2026 debut.
Justin Gaethje, a former All-American wrestler at Northern Colorado and Lakewood resident, takes on English superstar Paddy Pimblett in the main event for the lightweight interim title at UFC 324 on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. And Westminster resident Rose Namajunas will also fight in the main event in a flyweight bout against Brazilian Natalia Silva.
For Gaethje, the bout against Pimblett represents an opportunity to take a leap toward achieving a career goal that’s eluded him during a decorated career in the UFC: a true championship. Gaethje was the interim lightweight champion in 2020, but lost to Khabib Nurmagomedov later that year in his chance to unify the belt.
Gaethje, who is 8-2 as an underdog in the UFC, is again an underdog against Pimblett. “The Highlight” wouldn’t have it any other way.
“I love being the underdog, and I love so many people doubting me,” Gaethje said. “I’d like to knock (Pimblett) out, like always. I got here because I’m petty, and I use all that doubt as fuel. I’m excited to use my experience and beat this guy up.”
The current lightweight title holder is Ilia Topuria, but Topuria’s leave of absence from the sport opened the door to Saturday’s interim title bout between Gaethje and Pimblett. Topuria announced in December that he was temporarily stepping away from fighting to address issues in his personal life, which he said includes “false allegations of domestic abuse.”
Topuria said on X last week that he wants to fight the winner of Gaethje (the No. 4 contender) and Pimblett (No. 5). Gaethje echoed that hope, saying if he wins, he wants to face Topuria at the White House this summer. Christian Petersen, Getty ImagesJustin Gaethje reacts after losing by submission to Charles Oliveira of Brazil in their UFC lightweight championship bout during UFC 274 at Footprint Center on May 7, 2022 in Phoenix.
“What I’ve been speaking into existence is I win this fight, get the interim belt, and then (unify the belt) on the White House card in June,” Gaethje said.
Gaethje is coming off a win last March over Rafael Fiziev at UFC 313, and the fight before that, he was knocked out by Max Holloway in April 2024 at UFC 300. Following the win over Fiziev, Gaethje said he didn’t want to fight again unless it was for a belt, and the UFC met his demand.
“I wasn’t going to fight one of these fights where if they beat me, they were going to fight for a championship, and I was going to stay in the same place,” Gaethje said. “I’m not going to get used by the UFC.”
Gaethje, who has earned performance bonuses in every one of his UFC fights so far, wants to pressure Pimblett in the opening few rounds before landing the decisive blows of the bout sometime in the fourth or fifth round. Saturday’s card is the first UFC event on Paramount+ after the UFC signed a seven-year, $7.7 billion deal with the streaming service last year.
While Gaethje looks for an upset over Pimblett to kick off the UFC’s presence on its new platform, Namajunas also seeks an upset. Namajunas, the No. 6 flyweight contender, is coming off a win over Miranda Maverick last summer as the two-time strawweight champion aims to put herself in the title conversation with a victory on Saturday.
“I want to become a two-division champion, and that’s my main reason why I’m still here,” Namajunas said. “And they always say, it’s not really a championship champ until you defend it. So I’d love to defend that belt as well. That’s my plan for the near future, and I’m super hungry to win this fight on Saturday.”
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