Justin Gaethje reacts following Fight of the Night war with Michael Chandler at UFC 268

UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje reacted following his Fight of the Night war with Michael Chandler at Saturday’s UFC 268 card.

Gaethje and Chandler went to war for 15 minutes in what was the best fight of the night at UFC 268. Both Gaethje and Chandler stool in the center of the Octagon and traded punches and kicks for three full rounds. Incredibly, both men had the toughness and durability to actually make it the distance even despite throwing everything including the kitchen sink at each other’s heads. It was an absolutely phenomenal fight, but at the end of the three rounds, it was Gaethje who got his hand raised by unanimous decision.

For Gaethje, this was a huge win and one that he needed to emerge victorious from after losing his last fight to former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. Taking to his social media following his war with Chandler, Gaethje reacted to his performance in the fight and said that he wasn’t going to leave the Octagon without getting the victory.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CV94ptKr2oQ/

All glory to God. I wasn’t leaving tonight without my chance to put another strap on Trevor Wittman’s wall.

The win for Gaethje over Chandler should be enough for him to get the next title shot at 155lbs. The belt is currently held by Charles Oliveira, who puts his belt on the line against Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 269 next month. It seems likely that Gaethje is going to be next in line to fight Poirier, but there is also Islam Makhachev sitting out there waiting for a title shot too. As good as Makhachev has been, though, he’s never had a great fight like Gaethje vs. Chandler, and that fight will likely earn Gaethje the title shot.

What do you think is next for Justin Gaethje after defeating Michael Chandler at UFC 268?