Pimblett to fight Gaethje for interim title in January

On January 24 in Las Vegas, Paddy Pimblett will face Justin Gaethje for the interim lightweight title.

Following champion Ilia Topuria’s decision to not fight in the first quarter of 2026 due to a “difficult moment” in his personal life, Pimblett and American Gaethje have agreed to host the fight.

With Gaethje, 37, one place ahead of Pimblett, 30, in the lightweight division of the UFC, he ranks fifth.

Topuria, who won the title after defeating Charles Oliveira in July, said that in his absence, the UFC will “make the match-ups needed.”

In the first quarter of the following year, I won’t be fighting. The Georgian-Spaniard wrote on X that she is experiencing a challenging time in her personal life.

“I want to concentrate on my kids and get this resolved as quickly as possible.”

I don’t want to distract the division, I say. I’ll let the UFC know when the issues are resolved that I’m ready to return.

Even though he has lost to any fighters in the top 10 right now and has other prospects in the rankings ahead of him, his title shot comes.

Arman Tsarukyan of Armenia defeated Dan Hooker of Qatar last week, establishing his top ranking before calling for a title fight against Topuria.

Gaethje last fought in March, defeating Rafael Fizief by unanimous decision, and he has now won nine of his past nine UFC fights.

After defeating Tony Ferguson for the belt in a 2020 unification fight, he is a former interim champion. Khabib Nurmagomedov succumbed to his defeat five months later.

The UFC’s first fight will take place at T-Mobile Arena under its seven-year agreement with Paramount, a departure from the pay-per-view model.

American bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison will face Amanda Nunes, who has returned, for the co-main event.