Justin Gaethje receives long medical suspension

Justin Gaethje waited a long time to turn out to be an undisputed UFC champion.

Now the 37-year-old MMA star may need to wait another six months or so before combating again.

Gaethje upset former two-weight champion Ilia Topuria with a technical knockout in a light-weight unification championship bout at the UFC Freedom 250 event Sunday on the White House South Lawn.

Topuria was a bloody and swollen mess by the time his nook stopped the struggle between the fourth and fifth rounds. Gaethje executed a hovering back flip off the cage to have fun his first undisputed belt, but it seems that the previous two-time interim champion also suffered vital accidents during the bout.

Both Gaethje and Topuria have been among the 5 UFC Freedom 250 fighters who acquired 180-day medical suspensions from the Assn. of Boxing and Combative Sports Commissions, according to a checklist issued by the commissions and seen by The Times.

Gaethje’s suspension could be shortened if he’s cleared with unfavorable MRIs for his proper wrist and left knee. Topuria, who suffered two damaged orbital bones, can return early if cleared by a an Oral and Maxillofacial Foundation specialist.

Both males also are required to serve obligatory relaxation days (45 for Gaethje, 60 for Topuria).

Alex Pereira, who misplaced his interim heavyweight title bout to Ciryl Gane by TKO, was medically suspended for 180 days or until he’s cleared with a unfavorable maxillofacial CT scan. Undercard fighters Aiemann Zahabi and Steve Garcia also acquired 180-day medical suspensions.

Topuria gained the UFC featherweight championship by knocking out Alexander Volkanovski in February 2024. He vacated that title a 12 months later and in June 2025 defeated Charles Oliveira by knockout to declare light-weight belt.

In November, Topuria announced he was quickly stepping away from combating. Gaethje earned the interim light-weight title in January by defeating Paddy Pimblett by unanimous resolution.

That set up the unification bout between Gaethje and Topuria, which was the ultimate struggle of an elaborate event at the White House held on President Trump’s eightieth birthday and billed as half of a summer-long celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary.