UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje has revealed that he won’t fight again until 2027 as he heals up after defeating Ilia Topuria at the UFC: White House event in June.

“I still can’t punch anything,” Gaethje revealed to Sports Illustrated. “Both of my hands are still hurt from the fight so I’m just going to enjoy being the champion for the rest of the year because I fought two times already in the first six months.”

As for who he’ll fight next, Gaethje doesn’t have a definitive answer, but he suspects that it won’t be an immediate rematch with Topuria, whose corner opted to end their previous fight at the end of the fourth round after a brutal beatdown that broke his undefeated career record.

“Ultimately the UFC makes the decision on who I’m going to fight next,” Gaethje said. “I guess if I’m not fighting until next year, [Topuria is] probably not going to fight until next year, too, seeing as he’s still recovering from some things. I don’t think that’s my next fight, in my gut.”

It’s worth noting that though the 37-year-old Gaethje appears to be leaning towards defending his title, he also appears to suggest that he’s not completely ruled out the possibility of retiring.

“I’ve definitely put some thought into it, but like I said, I still can’t punch anything right now. Both of my hands are still hurt from my fight; I still have like a really deep bruise on my knee that I’ve had since Christmas, so I dealt with it through both of these last two fights. That never healed,” Gaethje said.

 “You know, put everything on paper, pros and cons, talk to all my family and everybody that loves me and that I trust to be honest with me, and then I’ll make the decision.”