Many MMA fans like to tout the truism that unlike other sports, MMA is not a "game," but instead a "fight." In most cases, this only holds partially true -- at this point MMA has been around long enough that fighters and coaches have studied the "meta game," and learned to employ tactics that will score points on the judges' scorecards but not finish the fight. When fighters take this strategy to the extreme, fans are quick to bemoan that even if the strategy did lead to victory, no one wants to watch a boring fight with no urgency to finish. Fighters like the overly-patient counter-striker Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson, or the lay-and-pray wrestler Jake Shields have been afflicted with this label despite collecting some impressive victories.

If there is one fighter who suffers from the opposite problem, it is Justin Gaethje . Gaethje has established that he can be counted on to entertain, taking home the UFC Fight of the Night award in all three of his UFC bouts. However, Gaethje now finds himself on the verge of a three-fight losing streak. And now, for the first time in his UFC career, his opponent seems to have no interest in playing into Gaethje's hand and engaging in a tit-for-tat, no holds barred war.

Instead, the surging James Vick has made it a point of emphasis that he willengage Gaethje on Gaethje's terms. Vick has been aggressively calling to fight Gaethje since Gaethje's UFC debut, doubling down on the idea that Gaethje's explosive style is too reckless to succeed against UFC caliber opponents. Vick has called Gaethje "a dumbass," "delusional," and even "the Homer Simpson of MMA" when assessing Gaethje's mentality and outlook as a fighter.

For his part, Gaethje seems to have taken the criticisms to heart. Gaethje has stated that he would retire if he is out-classed by Vick. In a sign that Gaethje may be willing to fight more strategically instead of seeking out a wild brawl, he has also reportedly placed more of an emphasis on wrestling in his training camp for this fight. Despite Gaethje’s background as a Division I All-American wrestler, he has been hesitant to utilize his grappling skills thus far in the UFC.

Instead, Gaethje emphasizes nothing but stand-up action. Prior to entering the UFC, Gaethje was able to have his cake and eat it too -- despite foregoing a strategic approach for an all-action style, Gaethje compiled an undefeated record and a World Series of Fighting Championship title (along with five official title defenses) in his pre-UFC career. In his first UFC match against the talented boxer Michael Johnson (who also fights this weekend in the co-main event), the big question was whether Gaethje would have to adjust his style to succeed in the "big league" promotion.

Gaethje was able to win that fight with Johnson without making any adjustment whatsoever. Putting up a high-guard to block his head was virtually the only defensive tactic Gaethje utilized, and he often walked forward towards his opponent even while his guard was up. Gaethje showed no interest in grappling, even allowing Johnson to stand back up when Gaethje landed knockdowns. Of course, fans were unanimously impressed that a fighter could secure a victory over a dangerous opponent while pushing the pace and hunting for a finish almost literally non-stop. Gaethje's star-making performance was rewarded by the UFC, and was given a feature spot coaching on The Ultimate Fighter reality TV program opposite Eddie Alvarez, leading into a bout against the top contender.

In a fight that was billed as determining "the King of Violence," Alvarez handed Gaethje the first loss of Gaethje’s career. As always, Gaethje gave the fans an electric stand-up striking war, but at last he had met an opponent who could beat him at his own game of enduring damage to deal bigger damage. In his next match-up with the dangerous and well-rounded Dustin Poirier, Gaethje again fought with the same style, again put on an incredible show, and again was finished in the later rounds.

Johnson was baited into a typical Gaethje-style brawl, and paid the price for it. Alvarez embraced the spirit of fighting a Gaethje-style brawl, and beat him at it. Poirier tried to resist getting drawn into a Gaethje-style brawl, and managed to do enough to survive with the win. Now against Vick, Gaethje faces an opponent who has made it explicitly clear that he has no interest in playing Gaethje’s tough-guy game.

Vick may not have the killer instinct that Gaethje’s past UFC opponents possessed, but he is dangerous in other ways. For one, he is huge for the Lightweight division – at 6’3" tall with a 76" reach, he will be the biggest man in the cage when he stands across from Gaethje at 5’11" with a 70" reach. The big Texan is not afraid to use every tool in his toolbox, as demonstrated by the fact that of his 13 wins, three were by KO/TKO, five were by submission, and five were by decision.

Vick doesn’t have a trademark win on his resume, and with a 13-1 record riding a four-fight winning streak, he apparently has been having trouble getting any name opponents to sign on the dotted line to face him. Vick's winning ways seem to have landed him in the no man's land of match-making where potential opponents consider his danger a big risk, but his lack of name value an insufficient reward. Stepping in as a replacement for Gaethje’s originally scheduled opponent Al Iaquinta , Vick now gets the chance to fight in his first main event and cement his position in the crowded Lightweight division.

In most Justin Gaethje fights, the most compelling question on the viewer’s mind is what sort of crazy maneuvers Gaethje will dare to employ. This time, the question might be whether Gaethje can resist the superfluous stuff that earned him his following, and fight like a man who wants to win. Even if Gathje should lose and accrue a dreaded three-fight losing streak, a fighter as captivating as Gaethje isn’t in danger of being cut by the UFC, but the result on Saturday night will determine whether his next matchup puts him back on track as a contender, or looking down the rankings as a gatekeeper who couldn’t make the necessary adjustments to hang with the top of the UFC roster.