{"id":753137,"date":"2026-06-22T15:40:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T15:40:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/753137\/"},"modified":"2026-06-22T15:40:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T15:40:13","slug":"ufc-hall-of-famer-backs-fellow-mma-legend-suggests-justin-gaethje-should-retire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/753137\/","title":{"rendered":"UFC Hall of Famer Backs Fellow MMA Legend & Suggests Justin Gaethje Should Retire"},"content":{"rendered":"

Arguably the greatest fighter in the history of MMA claims he\u2019d happily retire if he was in Justin Gaethje\u2019s position after the UFC White House event. <\/p>\n

We\u2019re now more than a week removed from the card dubbed \u201cUFC Freedom 250\u201d which saw The South Lawn of The White House host a total of seven fights on a Sunday night<\/a>, with two highly-anticipated title bouts at the top of the bill. <\/p>\n

After Ciryl Gane stopped Alex Pereira to claim the interim heavyweight belt<\/a> for a second time and spoil Pereira\u2019s bid for UFC history, Gaethje scored a major upset in the night\u2019s main event<\/a> when he handed Ilia Topuria the first loss of his career and finally won undisputed lightweight gold. <\/p>\n

George St-Pierre Weighs-In On Justin Gaethje Retirement Chatter<\/p>\n

Soon-to-be-inducted UFC Hall of Famer Demetrious \u201cMighty Mouse\u201d Johnson <\/a>made headlines in the days after the UFC White House event when he pushed for \u201cThe Highlight\u201d to retire<\/a>, and now fellow UFC legend Georges St-Pierre has also stated he\u2019d have opted to hang up his gloves as well following the biggest moment of Gaethje\u2019s career. <\/p>\n

\"Justin<\/p>\n

Justin Gaethje (blue gloves) celebrates after winning the UFC Freedom 250 fight against Ilia Topuria (not pictured) at the White House South Lawn. | Amber Searls-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really inspiring to see what he\u2019s accomplished,\u201d St-Pierre said on The Break Talk<\/a> (h\/t Red Corner MMA<\/a>). \u201cRetirement. I heard Demetrious Johnson said it, but that\u2019s what I would do. That would be an amazing ending. What else does he want to accomplish? He did it all\u2026I\u2019m sure he can still beat a lot of guys, but health I think is the priority. And also, the fact that when you\u2019re a professional athlete in combat spots, it\u2019s very hard to retire on top.\u201d<\/p>\n

St-Pierre famously took an extended hiatus from fighting following a controversial win over Johny Hendricks at UFC 167, which marked his 10th successful welterweight title defense after he reclaimed the belt from Matt Sera in 2008. <\/p>\n

\"Dana<\/p>\n

Dana White (middle) stands between Michael Bisping (left) and Georges St-Pierre (right) during a press conference. | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\u201cRush\u201d returned four years later at UFC 217 to meet Michael Bisping in a middleweight title bout at UFC 217. Although he didn\u2019t retire right away, St-Pierre eventually opted to walk away from fighting after he submitted Bisping and added his name to the short list of two-division champions in UFC history. <\/p>\n

Lightweight Title Picture Wide Open After UFC White House Event<\/p>\n

Gaethje previously had a lengthy run as the World Series of Fighting lightweight champion immediately before he joined the UFC in 2017, but there\u2019s little doubt that his performance at The White House will stand as the defining moment of his fighting career<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\"Charles<\/p>\n

Charles Oliveira moves in with a hit against Justin Gaethje during UFC 274 at Footprint Center. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Highlight\u201d first won the UFC\u2019s interim lightweight belt by stopping Tony Ferguson in 2020 to set up a meeting with Khabib Nurmagomedov later that year. After coming up short in that fight, Gaethje rebounded by defeating Michael Chandler but was submitted in the opening round when he got his second lightweight title shot against Charles Oliveira at UFC 274. <\/p>\n

\"Ilia<\/p>\n

Ilia Topuria (red gloves) fights Justin Gaethje (blue gloves) during UFC Freedom 250 at White House South Lawn. | Amber Searls-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

The 37-year-old did go on to have a brief reign with the UFC \u201cBMF\u201d belt before a win over Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 saw him reclaim the interim lightweight title and earn his third crack at undisputed UFC gold<\/a>. Following his upset-win over Topuria (and assuming he doesn\u2019t follow the advice of Johnson and St-Pierre) it\u2019s currently unclear who Gaethje may face in his first lightweight title defense.<\/p>\n

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