Nick Newell, who faced Justin Gaethje in a 2014 WSOF title fight, reflects on what made Gaethje uniquely dangerous. Newell says Gaethje's output, power, and forward pressure remained completely unchanged even when visibly exhausted, describing him as one of only two fighters he has ever seen operate that way under fatigue. Newell named Dricus Du Plessis as the only other fighter he has observed with the same quality.
Nick Newell has opened up about what it was like to share the cage with Justin Gaethje, offering a vivid firsthand account of a fighter he believes operates in a category almost entirely his own.
Newell, a 40-year-old southpaw who holds a 14-2-0 professional record, faced Gaethje in a 2014 WSOF title fight. Reflecting on the experience, Newell said Gaethje's output, power, and forward pressure stayed completely unchanged even when the lightweight champion looked visibly gassed — and that the only way to stop him was, in his words, to kill him. Newell identified just two fighters in his entire career of watching and competing in the sport who possess that quality under fatigue.
Gaethje, now 37 and the reigning lightweight champion, carries a 28-5-0 record and backs up that reputation with numbers that are difficult to argue against. He lands 6.48 significant strikes per minute at a striking accuracy of 58 percent, making him one of the sport's most relentless pressure fighters. Standing five-foot-eleven with a 70-inch reach, the Arizona-based Orthodox striker has built his entire identity around forward movement and volume that does not diminish late in fights.
The second fighter Newell placed in that same elite company was Dricus Du Plessis. The South African middleweight, ranked second in his division and seventh pound-for-pound at 32 years old, carries a 23-3-0 record and lands 5.18 significant strikes per minute at 48 percent accuracy. Standing six-foot-one with a 76-inch reach, Du Plessis fights out of a switch stance and also contributes 2.22 takedowns per 15 minutes, adding a layer of threat that operates alongside his striking aggression.
Why it matters
- Gaethje's conditioning under pressure has long been a talking point, and a former opponent's testimony adds rare firsthand weight to it
- Du Plessis being named in the same breath signals how the current middleweight contender is viewed by those inside the sport
- Both fighters are ranked inside their respective division's elite, meaning this quality of forward pressure has direct implications for any future opponents
