Justin Ray Gaethje is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was a two-time Arizona state champion as a wrestler at Safford High School, and an NCAA Division I All-American during his time at the University of Northern Colorado. In June 2020, it was announced that he would be inducted into the University Of Northern Colorado Athletics Hall of Fame for his achievements in wrestling.
About Justin Gaethje in brief
Justin Ray Gaethje is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He was a two-time Arizona state champion as a wrestler at Safford High School, and an NCAA Division I All-American during his time at the University of Northern Colorado. He began his amateur MMA career while in college, turned professional in 2011 and joined the World Series of Fighting in 2013, where he became Lightweight Champion. He defended his WSOF belt five times before vacating it to join the UFC in 2017. As of December 8, 2020, he is #11 in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings. In June 2020, it was announced that he would be inducted into the University Of Northern Colorado Athletics Hall of Fame for his achievements in wrestling. He is known for his aggressive stand-up fighting style. He has finished 19 of his 22 wins by knockout or technical knockout and has received five Fight of the Night and four Performance of the night awards in his eight fights in theUFC. He also holds the seventh-most near falls and the ninth-most team points scored in the history of the state as a Wrestler. He came into contact with mixed martial arts as a freshman at Northern Colorado, when he wrestled Ultimate Fighting Championships fighters such as Georges St-Pierre, Clay Guida and Donald Cerrone. He made his amateur debut on August 2, 2008, during the pre-season of his sophomore year of college.
His mother is of Mexican descent, and his father is of German descent. His paternal grandfather boxed while serving in the United States Army. His father retired as a copper miner in September 2019, after 36 years working at the Morenci mine in Arizona. His twin brother, Marcus John Gaethjes, also worked at the mine for almost 10 years. GaethJes also has a twin brother who worked as a machinist for almost ten years. His maternal grandfather was a postmaster while his father was a copper miners, as were both of his grandfathers. He had two sisters and a brother who also works for the mine. He grew up in Saffords, Arizona, with his mother, Carolina, and father, John RayGaethje, and has two sisters. He graduated from SaffORD High School with a 191-9 record. He initially applied to a small college in Arizona as he wanted to stay close to his family, but instead accepted an offer from the NCAA DivisionI program at the university. He went 5-2 at the 2010NCAA Division I 157 lb Championship to earn 7th place and All- American status. He dropped down to the 149 lb division for his senior year, but had struggles with weight cutting. In his senior season, he won true-second at the NCAA Western Regional Championships and so qualified for the 2011 NCAA Division II 149 lb Championship, wherehe posted a 1-2 record.
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