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Justin Gaethje isn\u2019t done fighting just yet, but he\u2019ll need a massive fight to lure him back into the cage.<\/p>\n
Gaethje is coming off an epic performance at the UFC White House event, beating down heavy favorite Ilia Topuria to capture the lightweight title. There was some talk of retirement following that win. Gaethje has talked about this being his final run. And in a new interview with MMA Junkie, his manager Ali Abdelaziz shared his thoughts on what\u2019s next for \u201cThe Highlight.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201c2027, we\u2019ll see Justin Gaethje fighting,\u201d Abdelaziz said. \u201cHe\u2019s fought two times this year. He deserves the time off. He\u2019s still the lightweight champion, undisputed, and I think all these guys have to chase him. But he wants to be in a big fight. A big, big fight. What is the big fight? Who decides that? It\u2019s Dana White who decides what\u2019s the biggest fight they can make.\u201d<\/p>\n
As far as Abdelaziz is concerned, Gaethje has already accomplished enough to retire happy. But he won\u2019t stop his client from capitalizing on his current position to make a whole lot of money.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would like to see Justin Gaethje [retire],\u201d Abdelaziz said. \u201cIf he retired today, I will be so happy because he did everything. And if he wants to choose to fight one more time, he can fight one more time because nobody tells him what to do. He\u2019s the boss.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the end of the day, it just has to be a massive fight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Abdelaziz wouldn\u2019t speculate on what that massive fight would be and suggested there was no point in even trying to figure things out now when so much could change by 2027.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou never know, bro,\u201d he said. \u201cIlia was supposed to fight Islam if he would have beat Justin. He didn\u2019t beat Justin. There\u2019s a lot of options. The UFC is so busy right now, let them do what they do. And we\u2019re gonna sit down and we\u2019re gonna figure this out like we always do.\u201d<\/p>\n