Justin Gaethje Stops Ilia Topuria in Round 4 to Seize Undisputed UFC Title

Q: Will Gaethje's first title defense go to the top contender or the winner of McGregor vs. Holloway?

Right now, the likelier pick is the top contender, not automatically the winner of McGregor vs. Holloway. The strongest merit-based case belongs to Arman Tsarukyan. He is on a five-fight winning streak, was previously in line for a title shot before injury, and has repeatedly been positioned near the front of the queue. The reporting explicitly says Gaethje’s first defense “might” be against Tsarukyan, which is the clearest directional signal in the available information. That said, the UFC has not closed the door on a bigger-money option. The July 11 UFC 329 main event between Conor McGregor and Max Holloway is described as highly influential to the lightweight title picture, and the winner would offer obvious promotional value. If McGregor returns successfully after five years away, or if Holloway scores a major win in the rematch, the UFC could be tempted to prioritize that matchup because it is commercially stronger and easier to sell. The complication is that McGregor-Holloway is booked at welterweight, not lightweight. That weakens the sporting case compared with Tsarukyan, who is a true lightweight contender. Charles Oliveira also remains a serious option after dominating Holloway and holding a prior submission win over Gaethje. So the answer is that the top contender currently has the inside track, but the winner of McGregor vs. Holloway could jump the line if the UFC decides star power matters more than strict divisional order.

Q: Is Jon Jones truly retired, or will his shadow undermine the new heavyweight champion's legitimacy?

Jon Jones is retired on paper, but not in a way that fully closes the story. He publicly said his fighting days were over, and Dana White has pointed to Jones’ hip arthritis as a serious obstacle. But Jones also tried to reverse course almost immediately, seeking a return just days after vacating the belt, and reports around the sport continue to treat his status as fluid rather than final. That ambiguity does cast a shadow over the heavyweight title picture, though it does not erase the new champion’s legitimacy. Tom Aspinall became full champion without beating Jones in the cage, which leaves the division without the clean handoff fans wanted. Jones’ refusal to fight Aspinall before retiring is the central reason the question persists: the most important matchup of the era never happened. At the same time, the UFC’s path forward is clear. Aspinall and Ciryl Gane are set for a unification rematch after their first bout ended in a double eye poke and surgery for Aspinall. If that fight produces a decisive winner, the division will have a stronger claim to stability than it has had since Francis Ngannou left in 2023. So Jones’ shadow will linger as a historical “what if,” especially because many still doubt his retirement is permanent. But the best way to end that debate is not waiting on Jones. It is for Aspinall or Gane to win decisively, defend actively, and give the division the consistency Jones never did.

3 articles · Updated · CBS Sports · Jul 1

A fourth-round TKO of unbeaten Ilia Topuria in June made Justin Gaethje the undisputed UFC lightweight champion, capping one of 2026's biggest upset runs.
Gaethje, 37, had already revived his career in January by beating Paddy Pimblett over five rounds for the interim belt, turning a near-retirement outlook into a title surge.
That two-win stretch has put Gaethje atop the fighter-of-the-year race, with only a spectacular second-half run from rivals such as Ciryl Gane or Sean Strickland likely to catch him.
Attention now shifts to Gaethje's first defense in a stacked lightweight division, where Arman Tsarukyan, Charles Oliveira and the July 11 results involving Conor McGregor, Max Holloway, Benoit Saint-Denis and Pimblett could shape the matchup.