UFC 324 lands in Las Vegas with an odd mixture of acquainted faces and first-time vitality. Justin Gaethje is again in a title struggle, whereas Paddy “The Baddy” Pimblett is lastly getting the highlight his ego has been chasing for years. They headline Saturday, January 24, 2026, at T-Mobile Arena, and so they do it with an interim light-weight title at stake, within the first numbered UFC occasion of the brand new Paramount+ broadcast period.
What to anticipate from the Gaethje vs Pimblett struggle
On paper, that is the basic UFC crossroads narrative: the confirmed veteran fighter in opposition to the momentum of the contender who’s realized win ugly when he must.
Gaethje, 37 and with a 26-5 report, arrives with the form of resume that doesn’t want advertising. A nine-time Combat of the Night time winner and a five-time Efficiency of the Night time winner, Gaethje has a behavior of turning tough matchups into among the finest exhibits of the UFC 12 months. On the opposite facet of the octagon, Pimblett is 31, 23-3, and closely motivated: that is his first actual likelihood to validate the concept that he belongs within the elite light-weight dialog.
Stylistically, the variations are fairly related. Gaethje’s output is constructed for violence: wanting on the stat snapshot, he sits at 6.59 strikes landed per minute, a quantity that exhibits each tempo and luxury in prolonged exchanges. Pimblett’s profile may be very completely different, nevertheless, as he’s extra of an opportunist on the mat, with a far increased submission charge (1.68 subs per quarter-hour), plus a takedown-attempt frequency that alerts he received’t be shy about altering ranges when the second arrives.
The early minutes ought to inform the story of the struggle. If Gaethje is ready to plant his ft, chop the legs, and hold Pimblett on the finish of punishing combos, the struggle might be a tricky welcome to the “prime 5” nights for Pimblett. But when the Briton is ready to get Gaethje reacting (feinting entries, threatening within the clinch, making each change finish with a seize), he turns it into the form of messy, exhausting bout the place one slip turns into a again take.
The psychological recreation is actual on this struggle. For now, each males are speaking like they count on penalties. Pimblett has leaned into the concept that this might be a harmful night time for Gaethje, promising the veteran “received’t be bodily the identical” afterward. And Gaethje, talking brazenly in regards to the again finish of his profession, has mentioned eager to retire by 2027, framing this as a part of a closing push towards undisputed gold.
That’s why the interim belt issues past the {hardware}: it’s not simply “Gaethje’s final run” or “Pimblett’s arrival.” It’s about who will get to take a seat on the entrance of the road when the division’s champion is able to return.
The place to look at the UFC 324 struggle
Right here’s the half that issues in case you’re watching from Canada: Sportsnet is the house of the UFC in Canada, and UFC 324 is carried by way of Sportsnet+, with the principle card out there as a separate PPV buy (Sportsnet notes you don’t want a Sportsnet+ subscription to purchase the PPV, however a subscription does embrace PPV prelims and UFC Combat Nights).
Canadian begin instances
UFC 324 has an earlier-than-old-PPV norm major card begin: the principle card begins at 9:00 p.m. Japanese, with prelims at 7:00 p.m. Japanese, and early prelims at 5:00 p.m. Japanese. Transformed throughout Canada:
- Newfoundland (NST): Early prelims 6:30 p.m., prelims 8:30 p.m., major card 10:30 p.m.
- Atlantic (AST): Early prelims 6:00 p.m., prelims 8:00 p.m., major card 10:00 p.m.
- Japanese (ET – Toronto/Montreal/Ottawa): Early prelims 5:00 p.m., prelims 7:00 p.m., major card 9:00 p.m.
- Central (CT – Winnipeg): Early prelims 4:00 p.m., prelims 6:00 p.m., major card 8:00 p.m.
- Mountain (MT – Calgary/Edmonton): Early prelims 3:00 p.m., prelims 5:00 p.m., major card 7:00 p.m.
- Pacific (PT – Vancouver/Victoria): Early prelims 2:00 p.m., prelims 4:00 p.m., major card 6:00 p.m.
What to do between fights
In lengthy occasions like this, even when the wait between fights will not be that lengthy, there may be plenty of downtime. And, if we consider that there are 4 hours between the early prelims and the principle card, it’s straightforward to get uninterested in the much less attention-grabbing fights. That’s the place smartphones could be a serving to hand, as you’ll be able to take these cooldown minutes to test main-event predictions, to play online casino games with MMA-related themes, to take a look on the stats of the fights you’re on the lookout for, or to test what social media is anticipating from the duel.
Ilia Topuria and different fighters weigh in on the struggle
If the matchup itself is a mode conflict, the fighter verdicts round it are a full-on cut up determination.
One camp is backing Gaethje for the explanations you’d count on: expertise, confirmed five-round toughness, and the concept that Pimblett hasn’t lived at that stage of hazard but. In that bucket, we discover names like Dustin Poirier, Arman Tsarukyan, Dan Hooker, Eddie Alvarez and Khalil Rountree, largely citing Gaethje’s energy and resume in big-fight moments.
Tsarukyan’s feedback have additionally been the least refined in that regard. “I hope it’s Gaethje, as a result of I don’t like Paddy,” he advised Demetrious Johnson. It wasn’t a technical breakdown, however it does underline that there’s a chunk of the light-weight elite that treats Pimblett as an outsider till he proves in any other case.
Nevertheless, there may be one other champ shopping for Pimblett’s rise. Ilia Topuria is amongst these selecting the Briton for the struggle, and he’s not alone: Sean O’Malley, Alexander Volkanovski, Arnold Allen, Tony Ferguson, and Demetrious Johnson additionally choose him. The reasoning there may be constant: Pimblett’s momentum is actual, his grappling menace modifications the geometry of each change, and if Gaethje provides him even a small scramble opening, Pimblett has proven he can money it.
All of this lands again on the identical core query: is Pimblett’s greatest path to victory dependable sufficient in opposition to a person who punishes each mistake, or is Gaethje’s violence too constant over 5 rounds? The verdicts are cut up as a result of the struggle is cut up: clear placing vs. messy grappling, veteran harm vs. youthful opportunism, the recognized commodity vs. the wager.
