Dustin Poirier is Picking Justin Gaethje, But Is Ready to Become a Paddy Pimblett Believer at UFC 324
Dustin Poirier is picking Justin Gaethje, but he’s ready to become a Paddy Pimblett believer.
Ultimate Fighting Championship makes its highly anticipated debut on Paramount+ this Saturday, January 24, with a stacked UFC 324 fight card headlined by an interim lightweight title tilt between two of the division’s biggest names — Pimblett and Gaethje.
For Gaethje, it will likely be his last shot at UFC gold, while Pimblett looks to claim his first belt inside the Octagon and set the stage for a long-awaited clash with bitter rival and reigning undisputed champion, Ilia Topuria.
Having already gone toe-to-toe with Gaethje twice, Poirier is leaning towards ‘The Highlight’ to get the job done in Las Vegas. But if Pimblett manages to get the job done, he’ll convert ‘The Diamond’ from skeptic from supporter.
“It’s a fun fight,” Poirier told Ariel Helwani. “I’m leaning towards Justin, but we’ll see. I just think he’s been in those 25‑minute fights. He’s been in dog fights before. I think Paddy’s going to have a tough time stopping him on the feet, and I don’t think Paddy’s going to be able to get him down. So he’s going to have to fight with him, unless Paddy can stay super disciplined for 25 minutes, stay at distance, pick his shots.
“Justin’s just a bigger puncher and he’ll put himself in harm’s way to land one of those shots, and it’s tough to stay away from that for 25 minutes. I think Justin stops him.”
“He is a legit fighter, he’s a good fighter, but I haven’t seen him beat that top, top guy yet,” Poirier continued. “If he beats Justin, I’m a believer then. The Chandler fight didn’t do it for me. Chandler might’ve just showed up for a paycheck. But with Justin, man, if Paddy can beat him over 25, I’ll be the first one to say I was wrong.”
Pimblett is 7-0 under the UFC banner, including notable wins against Tony Ferguson, Bobby ‘King’ Green, and Michael Chandler.
As for Gaethje, the former interim titleholder has won three of his last four, including a pair of decisive wins over Rafael Fiziev and a highlight-reel head-kick KO against Poirier in July 2023.
