A third crack at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) history?
No. 5-ranked Lightweight contender Paddy Pimblett is just weeks away from the biggest fight of his career, as he collides with former interim champion Justin Gaethje at UFC 324 on Sat., Jan. 24, 2026, inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The bout will crown a new interim UFC Lightweight champion.
If Pimblett pulls off the upset, a blockbuster showdown with undisputed champion Ilia Topuria would seemingly be next — assuming Topuria is available later in 2026. However, “The Baddy” believes another massive storyline could emerge instead.
According to Pimblett, all-time Featherweight great Alexander Volkanovski could view a Pimblett title reign as the perfect opening to chase history at 155 pounds.
“I’ve been hearing that Volk might retire after his fight because it’s in Australia, but you don’t know, do ya,” Pimblett told Tom Aspinall in a recent interview. “People say that all the time and then fight again.”
“I think if I win and he wins, and I get upgraded to undisputed champ, it wouldn’t surprise me if he thinks that’s the perfect opportunity to win the Lightweight belt,” Pimblett added. “I don’t want to fight Volk — I proper like Volk — but he’s probably looking at it like, ‘That’s my best chance to become Lightweight champion: beating Paddy.’”
Of course, this scenario hinges on several moving pieces. Topuria could be sidelined for an extended period amid personal issues related to his ongoing divorce, and Pimblett has openly stated that if the champion can’t defend in 2026, he hopes the belt would be vacated to avoid stalling the division.
Still, all of this is hypothetical.
Pimblett must first survive Gaethje’s power, and Volkanovski is set to rematch Diego Lopes just one week later at UFC 325.
Time will tell if the stars align — or if this remains nothing more than wishful thinking.
