Justin Gaethje, the UFC's top lightweight, explained why he refused to replace Oliveiro in a duel with Makhachev.
“The fact that the tournament was held in Abu Dhabi made my refusal much easier. If it were in America, in a time zone that is familiar to me, when I don’t need long-term adaptation, and if I didn’t have such a sad experience of performing in Abu Dhabi, perhaps I would have thought about this proposal. But in this case I immediately said “no” because I know that I will still fight for the title. If they give Oliveira a title shot, I'll wait. I’m at a point in my career where I don’t have anything to prove.”
