Justin Gaethje shares four-man hit list to get him back to a title shot, including Dan Hooker and Alexander Volkanovski

Justin Gaethje suffered a devastating knockout defeat against Max Holloway at UFC 300 in April to lose the BMF title. Given the severity of the KO, he opted to take a six-month break from sparring. But as he nears a return to full training, 'The Highlight' has shared a list of potential opponents for his next fight.

Dan Hooker's resurgence as a lightweight title contender has seen him included on Gaethje's list. 'The Hangman' has put together an exciting three-fight winning streak, most recently defeating the highly regarded Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305.

Fellow Australasian and fan favorite Alexander Volkanovski also found himself on the former BMF titleholder's list of possible matchups. 'The Great' has remained open to fighting at 155 pounds since his first lightweight title fight with Islam Makhachev at UFC 284.

Gaethje said during a recent media scrum:

"Yeah, Dan Hooker. I have a list - Hooker, [Charles] Oliveira, [Dustin] Poirier and Volkanovski are a list of four people that I think would do for me what I need to do to get back in the [title] picture."

When asked if a trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier was the fight he wanted most, Gaethje said this:

"I walked out of there after we were 1-1, I told him, 'Let's not do it again.' I'm not saying I don't want to or whatever. But that was the conversastion we had."

Watch Justin Gaethje's interview below (1:45):

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Justin Gaethje shares thoughts on Ilia Topuria vs. Max Holloway

Max Holloway will challenge Ilia Topuria for the featherweight title at UFC 308 in October, marking arguably the most highly anticipated matchup of the year.

'Blessed' is coming off of what many believe to be his best ever performance, a last-second knockout win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 300 to win the BMF title.

With 'El Matador' having undeniable one-punch knockout power, the upcoming featherweight title fight has fans eager to see how Holloway's famous granite-chin will hold up against Topuria's thudding power.

During the same interview, Justin Gaethje shared his thoughts on the matchup, saying:

"I really hope Max wins. Ilia was so impressive versus Volkanovski, his patience, he fought an amazing fight. I don't know, I expected something different than I saw from Max. I was very impressed, and in my mind I can't see him losing. It's because I just got put to sleep by him."