Justin Gaethje wants to add Conor McGregor to his highlight reel

The most exciting fighter in the UFC wants a piece of the biggest name in the sport.

Justin Gaethje has taken a look at his standing in the UFC lightweight division, assessed his options and called his shot. He wants Conor McGregor, or he wants McGregor thrown out of the UFC’s rankings list.

Speaking to ESPN, ‘The Highlight’ said he was “sitting in my house in Colorado” and “that he had no idea what the hell is going on with him”.

“As far as I’m concerned, he’s in the rankings so he should be available,” he said.

“He’s No. 3 [and] he’s the only guy ranked ahead of me that doesn’t have a fight. He needs a fight to get back to the title shot. That’s me.

“So, that’s the fight I want. He’s No. 3. If he’s not going to fight, take him out of the rankings. I’d be cool with that, too, and we can move on from there.”

Gaethje said he doesn’t hold any grudges against McGregor, but still said he fancied the chance to hand the Irishman his third defeat in the octagon

“He was the champion and he lost one fight since, so I’ve got no crap against that,” he said.  “But the UFC needs to handle their business and put him in the cage, so I can f**k him up.”

Gaethje also said he didn’t give interim champion Dustin Poirier a real chance of defeating Khabib Nurmagomedov in their upcoming lightweight title unification battle.

The pair are likely to meet in the main event of UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi in September, and Gaethje said: “I don’t give Poirier much of a shot. Maybe a 16% shot.”

That equates to 5.25/1 in betting terms. But, the Paddy Power oddsmakers have slightly more confidence in ‘The Diamond’ as they have him as an 11/5 underdog to defeat ‘The Eagle’ – giving him a 31.3% chance of victory.

One tweeter told Poirier he had a 25% chance, prompting ‘The Diamond’ to respond: “So you’re saying there’s a chance!”

So you're saying there's a chance! https://t.co/Dfejchg7DR

— The Diamond (@DustinPoirier) May 20, 2019

However you rate his chances, it’s fair to say Poirier’s going to be up against it.

* All odds correct at time of posting.