why is justin gaethje the interim champion

Justin Gaethje is the interim UFC lightweight champion because he defeated Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 in Las Vegas in a five‑round fight that had the interim belt on the line.

Quick Scoop: What Happened

• The UFC booked Justin Gaethje vs Paddy Pimblett as the main event of UFC 324 with the interim lightweight title at stake.

• Gaethje won by unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards (scores like 49–46 and 48–47), earning the interim lightweight championship.

• This made him a two‑time interim lightweight champion at 155 lbs, as he first held an interim belt back in 2020 after beating Tony Ferguson at UFC 249.

Why There Is An Interim Belt At All

• The interim title exists because the reigning lightweight champion is currently unavailable: Ilia Topuria stepped away from competition to deal with personal and family issues and is expected to return later.

• Rather than leave the division completely frozen at the top, the UFC introduced an interim belt so the top contenders could fight for something with real stakes and keep a de facto “active” champion in place.

What It Means For Gaethje Now

• As interim champion, Gaethje is effectively the number one guy at 155 in the absence of the undisputed champ, and he’ll be first in line to unify the titles when Ilia Topuria comes back.

• Until that unification fight happens, Gaethje will be marketed as the man holding the lightweight crown in the cage, with the option to defend the interim belt if the UFC chooses to book him again before the champion returns.

TL;DR:
Justin Gaethje is the interim champion because the UFC made his fight with Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 an interim title bout due to the real champ Ilia Topuria being temporarily out, and Gaethje won that fight on the scorecards.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.