Paddy Pimblett.
Coming into his headlining title fight against Justin Gaethje, “The Baddy” was hoping to not only secure his first-ever taste of UFC gold, all while locking down a title unification bout against division king Ilia Topuria, but he wanted to prove all the naysayers wrong.
Indeed, there were some who criticized Pimblett fighting for a title after what was seemingly a soft schedule to get to the big dance. The brawling Brit started off his UFC career with seven straight wins, with his biggest victory coming against Michael Chandler. Against Gaethje, though, he was facing a former 155-pound champion, as well as a “BMF” title holder.
Once the opening bell rang and both men got warmed up it was clear that fight fans were going to be in for a treat, as both made it clear it was going to be a standup war. And that’s just what we got for 25 minutes. While Pimblett had size on Gaethje, standing toe-to-toe against “The Highlight” rarely ends well for the opposition. And it was only a matter of time after Gaethje started to connect and hurt “The Baddy,” who did have some shining moments, though his overall game plan wasn’t ideal.
In the end, Gaethje proved to be too tough and experienced as he busted up “The Baddy’s” face to a pulp, which ultimately gave him the unanimous decision win, as well as his second interim 155-pound title. Credit to Pimblett, though, because he gained some fans and showed everyone that he can take a punch.
This is one of those instances that even in defeat the loser’s stock rose with his performance. Pimblett is just 31 years of age and only five years into his UFC career, so he still has time to make the adjustments to improve. There is no hanging your head low over going 25 minutes against a legend of the game. The night belonged to “The Highlight” but Pimblett has time to get his moment.
As far as what could be next for the brash Brit, perhaps a showdown against the loser of the upcoming bout between Dan Hooker and Benoit Saint Denis is in order. The two are set to tango next weekend at UFC 325 in Sydney, Australia. Both men are ranked just outside the Top 5, so either matchup would make sense.
Agree?
