Gaethje Tees Off: UFC Champ Joins Barstool's Internet Invitational

Justin Gaethje has found a way to fill the gap between fights, and it doesn't involve a cage. The UFC lightweight champion was confirmed Wednesday for Barstool Sports' Internet Invitational, a 64-player golf tournament kicking off Oct. 26 at Big Cedar Lodge in Ridgedale, Missouri. The field is stacked with pro golfers and influencers, with a few crossover names like former NBA guard Jason Williams and Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden rounding things out.

The timing makes sense. Gaethje isn't expected back inside the octagon to defend his belt until sometime in 2027, which leaves "The Highlight" with a packed calendar of exactly nothing. So he's doing what he's done all year: grabbing his sticks. The roster still has to be finalized, and it's not yet clear who he'll be teamed up with.

Not His First Round

This isn't a one-off novelty appearance. Gaethje has been posting golf content to his YouTube channel and showing up at tournaments for months, including one organized by his future title-picture rival Max Holloway back in July. The results, to be fair, have been mixed — at a celebrity event that same month, Gaethje failed to crack the top 50.

The Internet Invitational carries some weight for Barstool regulars. Returning champs Brad Dalke and Francis Ellis are back to defend. They won the 2025 edition alongside Cody Franke, who died before that series aired.

The Line Behind Him

While Gaethje works on his short game, a legitimate queue is forming at 155 pounds. Arman Tsarukyan sits as the No. 1 contender at 24-3 with six submissions, fresh off a first-round knockout of Mauricio Ruffy. Holloway is in the mix too, and so is Ilia Topuria — the man Gaethje beat at UFC White House to claim the title in the first place.

That's the strange math of being champion right now. Gaethje holds the belt, the contenders are piling up, and the next defense is more than a year out. Until then, expect more leaderboards than fight cards. Whether that long layoff helps or hurts a 37-year-old finisher is a separate conversation entirely.