Budding English fighter Paddy Pimblett was very active upon his arrival in the UFC. Paddy “The Baddy” made three appearances in less than a year and celebrated on all three occasions. Five months after his third appearance, Paddy entered his fourth fight in the Octagon.
Pimblett narrowly and somewhat controversially defeated Jared Gordon. Many then fired at Pimblett, but also at the referees who had decided the game in his favor. The Liverpool boy’s “stock” fell sharply after this performance and Pimblett waited a long time for a chance to return the favor.
Paddy was out of the cage for more than a year after the match with Gordon. He was plagued by an ankle injury and, as a fighter whose “hype” was growing inexorably, Pimblett found himself in a situation where fans were distracting him from him. However, at the end of 2023, Pimblett successfully returned to the cage. He defeated Tony Ferguson by unanimous decision from the judges.
Although he didn’t finish the exhausted ‘El Cucuy’, Pimblett showed some progress in his hitting skills, and most importantly, he managed to come back from a serious injury with a win. Currently Paddy does not have a contractual gig and he has recently become a father and is therefore not fully committed to training. Pimblett and his wife had twins and the role of father could trigger a new wave of motivation in Paddy.
The proof that his will to fight is growing again is certainly the answer he gave to the insults. Pimblett addressed himself via his YouTube channel, responding to Bobby Green and Renato Moicano, fighters who have often insulted him in recent months.
“As you know, everyone wants a piece of ‘The Buddy’ at UFC 300. Bobby Green screamed into the microphone as he said my name. He didn’t surprise me. He has a rank, but he has no followers and that’s why he needs me. Like the others, they all want to fight me because they know I’m a face. “Bobby Green is an option and if Bobby Green wants to fight, I’m here,” Paddy said, but then pointed out that Moicano was an even more desirable opponent.
“I would rather fight Moicana.” Where are you, Renato? I can’t say I don’t like Moicano. I actually like the guy. He’s cool and a fight between him and me would be hilarious. The announcement part of this fight would be really, really fun. I think it would be even more fun if we did a season of The Ultimate Fighter. For the fans that would be six, seven or eight weeks of pure comedy. Honestly, I would really like that. And I’d rather jump straight to 10th than beat a challenger in 15th,” explained Paddy.
Unfortunately for Paddy, this year’s “TUF” already has its coaches. Valentina Shevchenko and Alexa Grasso received these roles, but perhaps the honor will go to Paddy and Moicano at some point in the future.
As for Paddy’s next appearance, the UFC event in Manchester (July 27) seems a very likely option. But time will tell.
