Athletes
Paddy Pimblett | No Pressure, No Problem
After Missing Out On Interim Lightweight Gold Last Time Out, “The Baddy” Is In Relaxed Mood Ahead Of His Octagon Return.
Paddy Pimblett may have fallen short in his first bid for championship gold, but “The Baddy” remains as upbeat as ever as he prepares to resume his quest for a UFC title. Pimblett was defeated on the scorecards by Justin Gaethje after a thrilling back-and-forth war at UFC 324 that saw “The Highlight” capture the interim lightweight title and in the process book himself a shot at the undisputed crown.
Gaethje then went on to stop Ilia Topuria and capture the undisputed belt at UFC Freedom 250 as he closed the show at the White House in impressive style. Gaethje’s stoppage victory over Topuria has meant that Pimblett’s decision loss to “The Highlight” has aged pretty well, and proved to Pimblett that he belongs among the UFC's lightweight elite.
“Gaethje’s performance against Ilia showed me that I'm in the top echelon of the division,” he told UFC.com ahead of his return to action at UFC 329. “People still laugh and say I shouldn't even be in the top five and stuff, but when I beat (number) five at the weekend, there's nothing they can say about it. People were calling Ilia the pound-for-pound best in the world, and then he couldn't go five rounds with the person I went five rounds with.”
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Of course, Pimblett would much rather be sitting with championship gold around his waist already. But in a career that has seen him make a steady, consistent rise up the lightweight division, he’s still learning and still experiencing different aspects of life at the very highest levels of the sport, including the pressure that comes with fighting in the rarified air of a UFC title fight.
“Yeah, that's only pushed me on, losing that fight,” he said. “And this week I feel no pressure at all, whereas last time I did. I remember saying to my coach just after (the fight) that, before the walkout, before my song came on, I got very nervous, and I never get nervous, so it was weird. It was like I had a feeling I was going to lose. I always say, ‘What’s the point of being nervous when you know you’re gonna win?’ I got nervous, so I obviously knew I wasn’t going to win! (laughs).”
Pimblett also encountered another new experience following his first UFC defeat, as he explained.
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“The crazy thing about that last fight is I was on a seven-fight win streak before it, and I probably got more respect for losing that fight than I have for my seven-fight win streak.” he said. “I’ve got more people giving me props for losing a fight than actually winning seven in a row. It’s crazy how fight fans are like that. It doesn’t make sense.”
Pimblett’s chats with our team are usually pretty relaxed, easy conversations, and despite heading into this weekend having lost his last fight, the Liverpudlian looked like a man with the weight of the world off his shoulders as he talked about his upcoming bout with Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 329 this weekend in Las Vegas.
"Yeah, the pressure's off now for me this week,” he said. “The good thing about this week is Conor McGregor's fighting, and all the pressure’s on Conor McGregor. This is the first time in a long time I haven't had so much media coming up this week, and it's probably because McGregor's the main event. He's fighting (and), he's got all the media… I’m always going to have the spotlight on me, that’s the nature of the beast. But I do feel like I’ve got less pressure on me this time, and I think it’ll show on Saturday night when I go in and beat Benoit Saint Denis.”
The matchup itself is one that makes complete sense for Pimblett, who saw Saint Denis leapfrog him into fifth in the media rankings. “BSD” also sits fifth in the new Meta Rankings, with Pimblett further down the list, in ninth. That’s something he plans on fixing on Saturday with a big win over the aggressive French finisher.
WATCH: Paddy Pimblett Fight Week Interview | UFC 329
“I want my No. 5 ranking back, and I’m going to go and take it,“ he said. “I think BSD is good, but he should be ranked below me, and I’m gonna prove that on Saturday… He's got good power. His tenacity and his pressure are very good, but he's very reckless, and I'll show that you can't be reckless against me.”
It’s a fight with major implications for the top of the lightweight division. And, following Gaethje’s championship coronation at UFC Freedom 250, Pimblett says a victory could open up a plethora of big-time options, including a potential rematch with the newly-crowned lightweight champ.
“As soon as I beat BSD, I'm back in title contention,” he stated. “I had a good fight with the champion. People don't say it was close, but I think I lost 3-2. One of the judges thought I lost 3-2, so it was close… Beat (Saint Denis), and then it's whoever else is ranked above me. Everyone wants to see me fight Ilia (Topuria) – I'd love to beat the poor little (man) up. There's Charles, there's Arman, there’s Max, and Conor, you know what I mean? There's a lot of options out there, so let's just see what the UFC decides.”
Those options are dependent on Pimblett getting the job done on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena. “The Baddy” said he fully expects Saint Denis to approach the fight with his trademark aggression, but said that if he does, it will only hasten his demise.
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“I'm hoping that I knock him out in the first 10 seconds. That’s what I’m hoping.” he grinned. “But I think he's gonna come forward, like he always does, swing his big back (leg) body kick, his big back hand, and shoot takedowns, put pressure on. I don't know if he will shoot takedowns against me, though, because I’ll submit his ass, so we'll see how it goes.
“But I think I've got the cleaner striking, the cleaner grappling, and I think I'm a better wrestler. And I know he hasn't got the cardio to go three rounds. I think he was scared to do five, otherwise this would be a five-round fight.”
UFC 329: McGregor vs Holloway 2 took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 11, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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