DOUBLE COVERAGE PODCAST - Justin Gaethje on Beating Ilia Topuria, Paddy Pimblett, N3on Cornering Arman & Retirement

Episode Date: September 18, 2026

UFC Lightweight Champion Justin Gaethje joins the Double Coverage Podcast after his massive win over Ilia Topuria. Gaethje breaks down how he beat Topuria, why he still considers Ilia one of the best fighters in the world, the possibility of a rematch, Paddy Pimblett, his injuries, retirement talk and what could be next in his UFC career. Justin also reacts to N3on and Khamzat Chimaev cornering Arman Tsarukyan, gives his thoughts on Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy, discusses fighting on the White House lawn, why he hits so hard, UFC judging, Trevor Wittman, his fighting IQ and Georges St-Pierre saying he should retire. Then, Justin and Zach run it back for another sparring session at ONX Sports. Double Coverage is presented by DraftKings New DraftKings Customers turn five bucks into two hundred dollars in total bonuses, paid over 21 days. The Crown Is Yours! Sign up using https://dkng.co/dbl or through our promo code "DBL". #dkpartner Timestamps 00:00 Justin Gaethje on Ilia Topuria & UFC News 00:30 Justin Gaethje Joins Double Coverage 01:16 N3on & Khamzat Cornering Arman Tsarukyan 03:44 Gaethje Breaks Down Beating Ilia Topuria 05:24 Ilia Topuria’s Mindset Before the Fight 07:01 Justin Gaethje vs. Ilia Topuria Rematch? 07:18 Gaethje’s Injuries & UFC Return Timeline 07:53 Fighting on the White House Lawn 10:04 Tom Aspinall Heavyweight Title News 12:10 Gaethje Explains His Fight IQ & Defense 15:39 Ilia Topuria vs. Paddy Pimblett 17:45 Arman Tsarukyan vs. Mauricio Ruffy Prediction 21:24 GSP Tells Justin Gaethje to Retire 27:00 Justin Gaethje & Mystic Zach Spar Again #JustinGaethje #IliaTopuria #UFC331 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You know, he is one of the best in the world. There's no doubt about it. Whoever fights him next is going to be fucked. Sad news, Tom Aspinall forced to relinquish the heavyweight title. He got eye poked again. I didn't hear that, so I don't know if you're fucking going to me. No, no, I'm dead serious. Yeah, that literally came out.

Now we get to go spar? We're going to go spar now. What's up guys, Mrs. Ziggak here and welcome back to season two of double coverage. Today I'm honored and privileged to be joined by, perhaps the greatest American champion in the history of the UFC, coming off a win in which I described as the greatest victory in the history of the UFC, the main man himself, the highlight, Justin Gaichi. Yes, sir, welcome to my home. We're here at Onyx Sports. Yeah, this is awesome. I'm back here at Onyx Sports. It came here six months ago with Neon.

We did this six months ago with Neon. I'm actually glad we fumbled it because now I've now won. and the championship. This is better. I think it's a blessing in disguise. Yeah, I think so. I think it's white. Last time it was in limbo whether you're going to get the fight.

Yeah, and then we got a great stream. You beat us up. We went to your house. We should do that again. We should definitely do that again. Love it. I need to work out, so anything I can get. I'll push it.

Let's go. I'm in the gym every day. We'll do three, three minute rounds. I'm down. Let's run it. Neon is actually going to be an Armon-surukian's corner this weekend. Wow.

It's crazy. I mean, you were in there with Neon. Would you consider him a top strategist, a good guy for the corner? No. You didn't invite him to yours. No, no, I'm not sure what's going on over there. A lot of Tom Foolery. I didn't know that. I did not know that.

Yeah, so it's official. I guess it's going to be Hamzaa and Neon cornering Armand. He's got a tough fight against Rufi. Is that in L.A.? In L.A.? Crypto Arena. I'll be there. You'll be there.

I mean, how close are you watching that? Do you consider one of those guys, potential opponents? Of course. Of course, but this sport is so fluid. Everything's always changing. So you just kind of take it as it comes. You can never plan too far. head because who knows they might tie and then there's no clear so who knows who knows they

might headbutt be in no contest have to fight again you truly never know you never know with armin either he's pulled out of championship fights tonight before he's pulled out of one championship fight tonight before but it does happen yeah sometimes our body shut down when we're cutting weight so who knows none of us know what happened he's a bit of a wild card though i mean he's got neon and hamzai in his corner so he's a hundred percent a wild card yeah he's he bet on you his friend his friend did his friend did Oh, his friend did. That wasn't him. We can't bet. His friend did for him, but he picked you.

He was one of the few. I picked you as well. And it was funny because on the stream, we talked about a stat you had. I think you said you were nine and two as an underdog in the UFC. Now you're 10 and two. If someone comes to me like, hey, you lost me money. I'm like, well, you're an idiot. Because if you've been on my team the whole time,

if you've ridden with me every fight, you're so up. And so I don't want to hear it. No, no. That's sort of bull-and if you come to him saying that. I think if you pick your fight, just picked you money line every single time. I mean, you'd be up, way up. Perhaps hundreds of thousands of dollars, you know. Depending on your, depending on what color of your chips are.

Yeah. But this fight with DePoria, I haven't caught up with you since. Perhaps the biggest underdog you've been. I mean, the entire world. Yeah, I don't know what I was closing. He was more like 4 to 1 at closing. But when I think I ate 1, 8 to 1 at the beginning, 6 to 1 for most parts. My buddy, Greg put 200.

I got to the house. He's like, I put 300 and 20,000 on you. I won 1.1 million or something. But he had to do at three different books, nobody would take the whole bat. So different odds. There was all kinds of shit. I wish I could bet on myself, although I never would. That's quite literally your slogan.

They said Floyd used to have his friends, like, go bet on himself. And he would give him props to bet on and like. Yeah, that's crazy. I mean, that is tempting fate. And that's something I don't do. It's definitely a crazy game. I mean, that was a crazy fight. Yeah, it was awesome.

But you emphatically start the fight and really mark him up round one, which I think shocked him. I mean, I don't, did you see it in his eyes? I saw it when I cut him with that first, not the first uppercut I threw, but the first uppercut that landed and cut his eye, I could tell. It wasn't necessarily, he didn't, even then he didn't give me the respect. It was more like, oh, shit, there's really no time to, like, process what's happening in there. So, yeah, I saw him get cut.

I saw him affected by it, and I was like, sweet. And then I just back to it. Yeah, you took a page out of, I mean, it shows that you have Coach Whitman, because you took a page out of the boxers playbook. You're fighting a small aggressive guy, hard jab, step jab, and the uppercut. It's really crazy, you know, this game is so crazy. I go in there, I work every day. I come here, you know, four days a week to this gym.

Trevor, you know, instills a method. And we never, we never talk about it. We never verbalize it. And then we just instill it into every single workout. And then come fight night, you know, I'll have specific questions on like, is this what we've been doing? You know, which way am I moving? And then, you know, once I get the, my pre-fight workout,

everything kind of came together with this fight. And I was like, okay, I'm moving left the whole time. And yeah, just Trevor is a genius. I can't tell you how smart my coach. And he's a boxer, and my coach comes from boxing. So, yeah, it was a great matchup. You're almost getting programmed throughout the camp. And then...

I've been getting programmed for that fight for 16 years by Trevor. It was perfect. Do you think that the narrative about you, people have said, oh, you don't have defense, oh, you're just a violent guy. Do you think when guys go in there to fight with you, they're just shocked by your actual fight IQ and acumen in there? I mean, I think so. I mean, I think for the most part, people, my, my opponents give me the credit.

You know, it's the fans that don't really understand what's actually happening in there. But yeah, I think, again, I was such a blessing in disguise for me to catch Ilya at such a vulnerable place. It was a mixture of, you know, my mindset, my experience, my coach's game plan, and then him being in a bad spot mentally. It's a culmination of a perfect storm. Every single day throughout the fight week is like his confidence grew more and more and the more ego starting to rise until the night before he has a victory part. for himself. Yeah, I mean, there was a lot, like, a lot of times we were just doing interviews. I was like, hey, you're doing this wrong, man. Like, this could, this could backfire. And, yeah, it was awesome. It worked well. Every time you would point it out, he would lean into it harder.

So when I talk about it, it sounds like I'm like talking shit about him. He is so skilled. And whoever fights him next is going to be, if he did, if he forgets how dangerous this sport, how there's a little bit of luck and chance, then, you know, he's going to, you know, maybe become and make mistakes and, you know, not be his best or as locked in as he should be. But outside of that, without those mental mistakes, you know, he is one of the best in the world. There's no doubt about it. Everything I say that, you know, I'm never talking shit about the guy because he's so good. I want to see him come back.

I want to see him thrive. I want to see him prosper. The reason that my story was so significant and so, you know, relative and relatable, was because I failed, got knocked out by Max Holley, come back, you know, believed in myself and came back and came back and, you know, was able to achieve the championship. And he has the same opportunity to inspire the world through, you know, what he's going to do next. So that's really what I'm most excited to see. accomplished the American dream. I did. Yeah, but the sport's crazy. So again, he has the same opportunity to prove everybody

wrong, and so I think he's good enough to do that, so we'll see. Well, the UFC, Dana White, they're talking about a rematch, which sounds... I'm not even talking about... It sounds like lunacy. I mean, I'll have this conversation with you as a fan of MMA, but not as like... Right now you send your hands hurt, you're not looking to fight until

next year. Yeah. You're making your rounds, say the University of Florida, Lake kicking people, UFC... ...at convention, yeah. Playing as much golf as possible, trying to take as much of my friend's money as possible, in between, and then really just trying to let my knee bruise heal and my hand heal, and then I'm back. That's wild that the hand still sore after all. I mean, the life of a fighter. It was a, it's a nerve damage, so I mean, that shit's crazy.

You really can't ever know as a fan unless you get in there and fight Elie DePoria, I mean, it's just impossible. Yeah, there's no experience. That's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. How different does that walkout feel on the White House lawn versus in hindsight it's spectacular but you know on that night it was like I was so locked in I was so focused on not making mistakes you know understanding that the guy that I was fighting was so dangerous and so with all of those variables like it was no opportunity for me to be like holy shit I'm in the I'm in the Oval Office um you know but in hindsight I think it's always going to be there the UFC did such an amazing job at creating this unbelievable production so I get to have that for life so you know in hindsight it was it was amazing it was all spectacular I got to go back me and my parents went and had a lunch with The White House and the Oval Office a couple weeks later. He's a fan of the sport, so it was cool to talk to him about that experience. The walkout, the American flag draped around you.

I mean, it just, if you scripted it in a movie, they would say it was unrealistic. Yeah. No, I don't think you definitely could not write it better. You know, the farther back into my career, you know, with the defeats, to Khabib, to Charles, to Dustin, you know, and then, yeah, to come back and get knocked out by Max. Come back and do this. Yeah, it's been great. Can't write it.

You spoke about Ilyoskill, and I'm glad you did because the fans of the sport, are so fickle. Guys messaging me that have never been in a fight, like, oh, Ilya's a bitty quit. I'm like, bro, you have no idea what you're talking about, but you've never been in there. The fact you would say anything about him is insane.

How skilled was he compared to your past opponents? Because you fought... No, I mean, he's world class. You've been to the gauntlet. He is world class. There's no doubt about it. These fights are crazy. They're such a short amount of time,

you know, 25 minutes in time. Common in there being perfect is not possible to do every single time. So, this game is crazy, bro. You have no idea how crazy this game is. He is very skilled. I'm not sure he can stay at lightweight, but, you know, we're going to find out. Time's going to tell.

But I've been trapped. My voice is gone. You're screaming like, has you got money on the line? Because I'm winning or I'm losing or I'm trying to fuck somebody or they're trying to fuck me or Is anybody cheating lately? Anyone taking one too many mulligans? No, I've been playing with some pretty respectful people. I want to play with Corby.

I feel like it's time for me to get cheated. Is he the biggest cheater on the course? I don't know about the biggest, but. Does he still owe you? No. Chazio owes me $1,000, but he's going to pay me. and Noah's Sean knows me 2000, and I'm only saying that because

so they'll pay me. No, this just needs to come out, and we're going to send that to Chazzy. I tell my friends, I'll give you three days, and then I'm putting it on the internet. Yeah, then you're putting on the internet. That's very nice to you.

You could have said, I'm going to like it. This morning came out, really, like, sad news. Tom Aspinall forced to relinquish the heavyweight title. He got eye poked again in training, so his eye got worse. You're lying.

No. He had a fight date scheduled. He was ready to fight, and he got injury reagravated. Cyril Ghan is the champ. Terrible. Yeah, I mean, you got a feel for a guy when that happens, right?

I'm not happy for him. I think that, yeah, if that's... It sucks. It sucks to go through that, for sure. I didn't hear that, so... I don't know if you're fucking on me on. No, no, I'm dead serious. Yeah, that literally came out.

No, I'm dead serious, yeah. No. In practice? How does that happen in practice? We, I mean, it happens, obviously. I mean, we use open-hand gloves. So it's definitely a possibility, but... It sucks.

I wanted to ask you, when you're fighting, You throw punches in a peculiar way sometimes where you're kind of landing with the gloves and I know you're the highlight, but you're almost like the surgeon Whenever a guy leaves the fight with you, they're just marked up and bruised up everywhere. Is that on purpose? You're kind of throwing punches with different techniques or is that just natural for you? I wouldn't call it a different technique. I think my ability to like put them in positions to take my punches Square is why they're getting so beat up, you know, so marked up. I cut Tony Ferguson on his left cheek and that was like my last two months. knuckles on my right hand sliding off of his cheek there. I mean, these gloves cut you. If they touch your skin, they cut you. I've been cut before. You know, I've been, I've got the

lightest jab and it cuts my face. Sometimes these gloves cut you. You know, it's all about, I try to roll my punches over, so I'm obviously trying to, you know, peel your shit open when I hit them, but that's how I punch. That's how you're supposed to punch. You know, that's how you throw a ball, you release it and I'll punch you to roll it over. Yeah, sometimes that knuckle might get there first, but then there's still a rollover. It's not. Nobody deals more damage to their opponents than you. Well, again, nobody sees what's happening. I'm able to punch them square, and they're taking the full forces of my punch.

The reason my face is not getting marked up is because they're not landing square punches to my face. And that comes from your angles, your footwork. It comes from intuition, really. I mean, I'm so intuitive in there. I mean, I've done this so much. You know, I'm like a computer. I'm constantly adjusting and reading and pretty much running code the whole time, space time. And then my body is just making these adjustments.

And so through all the experiences I can see when, you know, there's a couple of videos I've seen where he throws a one, two. And I'm already, you know, when he throws his one, I'm already turning my head away because I intuitively know that the right hand is coming. And so really it's just being locked in, being cerebral, being intuitive, and, you know, understanding that this game, you know, is less than inches, less than seconds. And then you just have to be comfortable. And so that's why I don't get hit as much as people think. The numbers are absolute dog shit. After the first round, it said he had hit me as many times as I hit him. And there's no, there's no way.

No, that was not a close first round. No. No. They're probably counting like the blows that you're rolling with, right? And like, who knows what's counting? Is it a computer? Some AI? I have no idea.

We don't know. Yeah, if you have no idea. I don't know where those numbers come from. Dana Corriere, these guys always reference those numbers. You know, that's what people remember hearing and they're like, even if they saw something different, then they hear like, Eelian landed more shots than Justin in the first round. It's like, oh, maybe, maybe he won the first round.

And it just completely changes the percentage. of what happened. If they were true and real, then okay, that's different, but they're not, they're boggous. There's so much group think in combat sports because there's not an official score on the scoreboard, right? It's not like football where you know, so. Well, we're all seeing something different, and we all come from different backgrounds. That's why I don't blame the judges. Like, it's impossible to take the human bias out of, out of the equation. I think they need more people. Right now it takes two people to, to to f*** everything up. You know, with 51 people, it would then take 26 people to

everything up and I don't know I don't know if that would I don't know if that would change I think it would I think so too car would you put half of them in the arena half of them out of the arena half of them in L.A you know in a studio and they're all judging and then you come up with something with a with a greater number of people but I do think that we would still run into the same issues because this sport is so crazy and we don't know what the fuck going on no but it's hard to see it's so fast it's hard to go off three judges who are there especially there's a fan favorite because then they're definitely getting swayed is the audience erupts whenever a guy comes close landing a big punch. Yeah, that has always been my theory on why we need to remove or see what it

would like if we remove them from the atmosphere. Because you're right, it's impossible. They're humans. It's impossible not to have feelings, thoughts, um, biases. I went to a world championship boxing match a couple weeks ago and our entire section was one of the guy's family. So they're going crazy whenever he lands a punch and everyone I'm with is like, oh, Zach, it's like 4-4. I'm like, no, it's not. It's like 7-1. What are you talking about? But then I got it. I'm like, oh, because everyone around us is going crazy whenever he's throwing a bunch. Yeah, so it seems like he's winning more often. And then the scorecards came out, everyone's surprised.

I'm like, no, that's what happened. I would like to hate on the judges, too, but they got it right. Well, we all have a bias. We all have a bias, and we all love to complain about the judges. It's definitely a favorite thing of everyone's, but no, sometimes they get it right, and you're the biased one. Did it help you going to the Iliophite that you had that respect for him and knew the kind of ability that he had?

Because we had spoken before, maybe respect's not the right word, but you were healthfully anxious about it and understood the danger you were heading into because you had said, The Max Holloway fight, you had no nerves. You walked in there and you didn't feel it. Yeah, I mean, definitely him beating Charles Oliver, him beating Max Holloway. You know, those two performances were definitely at the forefront of my mind,

especially with having two losses to those guys. So, yeah, I mean, yeah, every day I woke up, inspired to not let this fool knock me out in front of my family. So again, he'll learn. You know, there's mistakes. And there's just thoughts you can't have. Do you like the fight between him and Patty stylistically? You fought both of them.

I mean, I would love to see it, yeah. Who would win? Patty is a conundrum to me. I don't understand him because, you know, after fighting him, being in a couple grappling situations with him, my main goal was do not let him touch my head. Don't let him grab my head. You know, because he's definitely got long assed arms

and he wraps him around the neck, and there's a lot of leverage going on in there. Then I never thought that he was that strong. I never felt that. And then to see him do that to BSD was incredible. To see him do that to Michael Chandler, even before I fought him, I watched Michael Chandler fight him.

And I was like, wow, this kid's got to be, like, incredibly strong. He's a big guy. And then, yeah, I felt, I felt strong against him, you know, I was big. I was like, I have to get big against him. So I focused on that. And I felt our size was very comparable to each other. And, yeah, I didn't feel like he was super strong.

And then I see him do that to BSD. I'm like, what the fuck is going on? And so, yeah, I don't know. It's your bone density, bro. No, I truly don't know. I think I really is so good. I think Patty is, his style is so unique. And if you do hang out with him and don't pressure him,

I think he's so hard to hit. And he's very good at landing, like, funky ass from crazy angles. So I think if, if you fight, Howdy with space, I think he's hard to be. He's an anomaly for sure. I mean, the way he wrapped BSD up like that and transition and got around his neck. Yeah, it was, I've never seen that. I mean, if you're saying that, then it's not just that, but BSD did exactly what he was supposed to do.

When it comes to the defensive position and posture, whenever someone grabs that, you know, that choke. I mean, it was awesome. It was sick. No, he's like a spider, an anaconda. I was like, what the hell? Yeah, very unique. And the punishment he took against you in tenuant. over and over and over and over and over.

No, Patty, uh, Patty's a problem. These kids are hungry. Two special young, hungry guys that, you know, he's got this. That would be a great fight. And the trash talk, obviously, the history. Yeah, I hope they fight. I think it'll be great. That would be sick.

I think it'll be a great show. I'll definitely go watch. Are you going to all the UFC fights now? Are you missing any of them? It seems like you're fucking wrong. I mean, I'm traveling a lot. I got a lot of shit going on. I have some sponsor stuff in L.A. this week, so I'm going to these ones.

This next segment is presented by Draft Kings. Zach, you just interviewed the UFC lightweight champion, and Justin to highlight Gachi. Big event this weekend at the Crypto Center in Los Angeles. Armand Sarukian versus Rufi, do you like? Well, this is definitely a fight with a lot of implications in this lightweight division. The title picture becomes a little bit more clear this Saturday.

Not only did I interview the champ, but I also sparred him. But I got a little taste of that. I can actually barely breathe right now. I'm tasting my own blow. But Armin Sarukian, been more of a streamer than a fighter lately. I mean, we almost forget what this guy looks like in the Octagon. This is a guy who, in his 11 fights posted as Lamakachev, when he made his UFC debut is 10 and 1.

And the one fight that he lost against Gamrod, I thought he won. So to me, he's 11 and 0. He's had a lot of success in real American freestyle wrestling, right? He's kept his name in the headlines, and he's someone that everyone's excited to see because of all the noise he's made outside of the cage. But let's not forget, he's going against an actual... And Rufi, coming off of two devastating knockouts,

one over Fiziev, who can strike with anyone, and then over Michael Chandler at the UFC White House, really put his name on the map. He's a young guy, 30 years old, representing the fighting nerd. So on the feet, Roofie composed massive problems for Arm and Surrey. For Armin, he's gonna try to wrestle him, and who does he have in this corner to help him?

Not only Hamza at Chimae, but he's got Neon. We saw what Neon can do. She obviously one of the best, that that's gonna be a massive advantage for Armin's fight, but in all seriousness, I think Armin's gonna get to his spots, pick him well, and he's just too good of a grappler to not get in those advantageous positions that are gonna allow him to win this fight. So I like Armin Surukin here, and I think he's gonna get it done by decision. I don't see Armin Serucan going out there and displaying some spectacular n-h-hre-cranking his face in the very first round.

It might be methodical. That's what we typically see that of Armin. He fights at his pace, right? And he really puts you in positions that you're not used to being in. I think Armin is a dark horse of this division. Right there with Justin Gachie, he is the cream of the crop. So I think he cements his status as the top lightweight contender this Saturday with an emphatic win over Rufi. Neon and Homestatramian in his corner, I guess.

And with Justin Gajie in the crowd. By the way, he says mindset, not even close to fighting. So he's going in as a fan, as a spectator. We're not going to see the Ryan Garcy. Pima Lopez Showdown. So whoever is victorious, Gage is not gonna get in there and talk trash. He's there to watch as a fan.

But in the back of his mind, you know, Gach, he's gonna be watching pretty closely, no matter what he says, and his heart is a competitor. My home is Arizona. I haven't been home since I fought, so. That was a great opportunity for me to go home and see my family. Took my nephews to the fight and my parents.

So it was good. And how does it feel to be revered the way they are? I mean, you're speaking on college campuses. I mean, I kind of like it. I kind of don't. You know, I signed up to get punched and punch people. And now I'm talking. in front of a shit-tonged people.

And so it's like not something I ever aspired to do. You're definitely a lot more comfortable in the octagon. 100%. 100%. I don't have to talk. Is that, um, have you thought about your post-fighting career? I'm, uh, how comfortable that would be without having a training camp on the horizon or the thoughts of danger on your mind?

Oh, I don't think it'll be comfortable. I think it would suck. I like to do shit. I like to work towards things. I like to, you know, have ambitions and goals. So I think no matter what, I'm going to, you know, keep that same mindset. I have ony sports, you know, a sports equipment company. I have a couple different adventures.

You know, going down some commercial property stuff, some skiing snowboard stuff. So I'm just trying to get as much information as I can from as many smart people as I can and successful people. And then I'm trying to use my mentors to figure it out because I go to a lot of golf courses. And there's someone like so much money all over the place. And none of those people got punched in the face. So I know there's other ways to make money. There certainly is especially for you.

I know it. I know it. You're the man of the hour. Feels like you've hit a whole other stratosphere since I was last year, which I couldn't be happier for you. Seriously. I interviewed George St. Pierre.

He had kind of a viral clip where he said, I know people don't want to hear this, but Justin, I love you. You're a great fighter. You should retire. Do you listen up when you hear stuff like that or is that ultimately just your own decision? Well, I mean, it's obviously my decision,

but yeah, I listen to everything. Yeah, I hear everything. I read comments, but ultimately I have an amazing family, parents, siblings. My brother definitely does not want me to stop. brother is 100% on, you know, forward. But yeah, everybody else, we're just kind of figuring out.

They know that I'm hurt right now. They know I can't fight again this year. So they kind of just want me to enjoy, you know, this. We cover, rest, recover. Enjoy what I have accomplished. And then, you know, I think we're all going to around Christmas time probably have a conversation about what's, you know, what's next. Talk to me about your brother in your relationship with him and how important he's

been throughout your journey. Yeah. I mean, he was, he was my wrestling partner. We competed at everything, you know, wrestling, baseball, football, soccer, swim team. You know, he's such an asset to. to my competitive drive, but now he has four twin daughters. So he's fighting, but it's a different kind of fight. Is he, like, when you're in training camp, is he, is he watching film for you?

Is he like, no, no, he's not really involved. So he was in my corner for a few fights at the beginning. And then, you know, I was like, hey, I got to get a jujitsu coach. So you got to go. So, yeah, he was always there just, you know, to be along for the ride. But, you know, once he started fighting the best in the world, I had to build my team. And so he just, he just enjoys it. But he's telling you keep going.

He's like, he's... Wow, yeah, he loves it. He loves it, yeah. Especially with the last one, you know, he had a good time. Oh, my God. What was your family's feedback being there on the White House lawn? I mean, can they believe it, or they just... Yeah, I mean, yeah.

I mean, they've been here the whole time, so they always believed in me. They believe in me more than I believe in myself. So, yeah, they always saw this coming or, you know, not the White House lawn, but, you know, the championship. And, yeah, just come for the lawn. At the White House lawn in front of the White House was spectacular. So, yeah, I mean, it's going to be... an amazing memory for them for the rest of their lives and my life. We got a sh**n of pictures from it,

so it was great. Do you remember their reactions when you, mom, dad, I'm fighting on the White House lawn? It's different than you would think because the highlight is that it's going to be on the White House lawn and they're just scared because now I have a fight. Two different worlds. Totally different. They're worried about their son. Yeah, they're like, cool, it's on the White House lawn. I can't wait for that, but they're just nervous. Yeah, of course. Especially your, I mean, your mom's got to be. My dad probably more than my mom. My mom loves it. Really? Yeah, she's super competitive, so she loves it. Is your mom the Mexican side?

Yeah, it makes sense. Makes sense, yeah. We just have Mex Independence weekend. Did you celebrate a few beers? A couple months. You got lit? My dad texted me the one you're doing L.A. Friday is like, me and your mom are flying to California. We're going to get drunk with Justin Friday.

Let's go, pops. How much more fun do you have when you're out of camp and don't have to die and drink your beers? It's a lot. don't drink too often, but these trips, yeah, I get to eat and then I get to play golf. So those are my, that's why I go on these UFC trips. They have to fly me there. They have to put me in the hotel rooms, and then I get to golf in the morning and do my appearances at night.

It's working so well. Yeah, I'm loving it. Can you go anywhere without getting stopped by a fan now? Has that changed? Yeah, not really. Not anymore. Did it hit a whole other level with this past win? I think the memorabilia is selling for more.

I mean, your captured titles four different times, but you won the WS. SOF title defended that. I was talking about this with Bobby Green. He was like Justin Gachie is the greatest American chamber we ever had. Look what he did in WSOF. Look how I won the BMF belt. Look how I won the Interm belt twice. And then look how he captures the undisputed belt now. Who else has done that? Nope. I got every one of them. You have the infinity stones. Thanos. Yay. I do not want to end the world though. No, you don't want to snap your finger and take out 50%. I would never. Yeah, maybe 3%. Who are your favorite fighters to watch today? To watch fight? Yeah. I mean, I do like watch a Bobby fight.

Fights are so fun. Mareno just fought. Marendo's fun to watch. A lot of those little guys, they're so fucking fast. They're so fast. No specifics. What about some of the guys from,

from Onyx? How do you feel when they fight? Like when Kamaru fights? Yeah, when my friends fight, it's way worse. It's way worse. It's way more nerve-wracking than when I fight.

No doubt about it. You're almost like in your parent's shoes when you fight, right? Yeah, exactly. Not enjoyable. Can you stay in the moment, like try to give them advice during the fight, or are you just like on pins and needles?

I mean, I'm never in their corners, so that's not my job. That's not your jam? No. Would you do it? I get them ready before. I would. I mean, I have.

I was in Archie's corner. But yeah, I've done, I mean, I have done that. And yeah, I've been there a lot so I can share my experience and help them out. Yeah. Onick Schim here, a beautiful facility. Obviously, you work with Coach Witt and Luke and all these guys? Is that, you think that could be a path for you post-retirement, like getting into coaching? I don't think I'll be a coach.

You don't think so. No. Takes a different special type personality. You have to, I mean, it's- I always complicate things. I make it too complicated. I talk about, I talk too much. You have to know yourself and know that about you, right?

Yup. That's what the best coaches do. Not all of them are the best fighters. Like, people think the shoe fits, right? Like, Michael Jordan's going to be the best owner. LeBron's going to be the best coach. But Pat Riley and Phil Jackson, you know, so. Yeah, there's no way I could teach the way coach teaches.

He's got a certain skill. Like poetry, emotion, yeah. Yep, boys are artists. The way they design the glove. I mean, everything, the equipment, the training, I mean, everything here is, like, top-notch. This is literally, like, as a lead of a facility as you can have. I really enjoy. I hate leaving this place. I was just gone for like four weeks. It's so good to be here today.

You get a good training session in? Yeah. Yep. Got some wet underworn right now. Worked off the... Yeah, I had to do that. That's a must. There you have it. The highlight, Justin Gaichi. Now we get to go spar. We're going to go spar now. We're going to go spar now. I'm ready. Okay. I'm excited. Let's, uh, how did you feel, you know, last time when we did spar? Did you? I can tell you worked out. You're trying to, you're trying to come in better shape. We'll see how long you last. I did come in better shape. I've worked out a lot since... Take it pepp in something.

Yeah, yep. There you go. I'm... I'm... I'm... Maxing. There you go. So I've definitely made health a priority.

Boom. Testosterone through the roof. Yeah, everything is through the roof. Can that help me in there? It's all cardio. How much you've been running? Man, I hurt my ankle. Before that, I was doing a good four miles.

Like, like, solid. Four miles, okay. I think you're going to be good for two rounds. Okay. Third round's going to be rough. Yeah, the liver shot got me last time. Oh, I did want to say this. Like everyone saw the blood nose.

That you were not, you were punching with like 3% power to the head. You were not Sean Strickling me. Like I know the comments were like, oh, he went so. I'm like, no, no, that's not what happened at all. I have a sense of nose. My nose bleeds all the time. It's been quarterized twice. Blood.

You did not try to fuck me up to the head at all. Blood is superficial. I would never hurt your head. You literally. Your liver is my liver. Your liver, you took hard. Yeah, I wasn't going to, yeah. No, no, no.

You certainly took my liver. I can't put my left hand, though. So we're going to put shingars on today. Okay. Perfect. Yeah, that'll help me a lot. All right. The highlight.

Thanks for coming back, man. Thank you for having me seriously. Yes, I'm glad we can redo it. And now we're going to go spar. Let's go. Let's do it. They hauling bag, this and bag dead. Tell them get like me.

Fripped it. Tell them little boys that don't pass that. They stuck in the city, let them have it. I just spent 20,000 on some cacket, but these some grown heart. What's on your reach? Let me see what you're having. 59. The road goes paddock.

I see why I see why I. That's what it feels like in the fuck UFC? It's way worse. Holy shit. I want to get some help they come up with shit and know about myself. I'm wishing that love I gave about I kept. I feel like the last one left. Let me get you a little dudes some news you can use.

Once you start competing, that's when you lose. It's big up both way. What they're going to do? I'm your boss. You're all right. Way better. Thank you, bro. Double coverage is presented by Drap Kings.