The UFC might soon have its first challenger for Ilia Topuria’s lightweight championship, as Justin Gaethje will face Paddy Pimblett for the interim title in the main event at UFC 324.
Gaethje, a former divisional interim titleholder, earned this opportunity by winning three of his past four fights, including his most recent unanimous decision win over Rafael Fiziev last March. Pimblett, an ascending fan favorite from the U.K., is undefeated inside the Octagon. He enters the fight following a knockout victory over Michael Chandler.
In the co-main event, former men’s bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley vies to reenter title contention when he takes on Song Yadong. O’Malley looks to get back in the win column after suffering back-to-back losses in his past two Octagon appearances. Song beat Henry Cejudo by unanimous decision in his previous fight.
Also on the card, former two-time men’s flyweight champ Deiveson Figueiredo lost a unanimous decision to Umar Nurmagomedov in a bantamweight fight to finish off the prelims, and another former champ, Rose Namajunas, will face up-and-coming flyweight Natalia Silva in the second fight of the main card.
Brett Okamoto, Andreas Hale, Jeff Wagenheim and Dre Waters break down all the action from the first UFC fight card of the year.
