MMA fans are familiar with the two sides of Paddy Pimblett.
There is the jovial, funny, quirky Paddy who gives up his spare time to attend charity boxing matches and has become an advocate for his community and mental health awareness.
He is as much a fan of the sport as he is an elite fighter; always ready to chat with fans and take pictures.
Then there’s the no-nonsense, abrasive Paddy, who we have seen clash on multiple occasions with, among others, lightweight champion Ilia Topuria. But it doesn’t matter who you are, Pimblett (23-3) won’t take a backwards step if you offer him a challenge.
The two versions of the Brit will clash and change before our eyes when he takes on Justin Gaethje (26-5) on Jan. 24 in Las Vegas at UFC 324 for the interim lightweight title.
Pimblett is full of admiration for his veteran rival, who made his UFC debut back in 2017 and is one of the most respected fighters in the game.
But ‘The Baddy’ barely skips a beat when asked what it will be like going up against someone he respects and likes so much in a high stakes fight.
«This is what you’ve always wanted to do,» Pimblett tells ESPN. «You want to fight these people that you’ve always looked up to and, it’s sad to say, but I think I’m going to retire him, you know what I mean?»
Cold. Calculated.
Pimblett predicts the fight won’t go past Round 3 and will be even shorter if he gets Gaethje on the ground.
«Over in two minutes,» he says.
He has form to back up his ambition.
Pimblett has won three of his seven UFC fights by submission and two by knockout. He has been awarded a Performance of the Night bonus five times and was nominated for the UFC fans choice award for submission of the year in 2024 with his win over King Green.
However, the Brit believes the finish will be more devastating and emphatic than a submission.
«I see me finishing him,» he explains. «I’ve had visions of so many different ways this fight will finish, I’ve got a funny feeling when I knock him out, which a lot of people are laughing at me for, but I’ve got a feeling I’m going to knock him out.»
«You’ve got to beat your heroes»
In the world of a fighter, preparing and performing as best you can; trying to take your opponent’s soul and scrapping until there’s nothing left is the ultimate show of respect.
«You’ve got to beat your heroes to become one of them and I’ve always loved watching Justin Gaethje fight,» Pimblett says.
«No stone will be left unturned in the build-up to this fight. He’s a legend. He’s your favourite fighter’s favourite fighter. He’s one of mine and obviously I’m going to feel bad beating him up, but once you’re in the cage it’s different.
«I thought that Michael Chandler was a nice fella and then look how his face was when we finished the fight.»
But there’s a reason Gaethje is so revered.
A 14-fight veteran of the UFC — double Pimblett’s tally as it stands — the 37-year-old’s willingness to take big, risky fights, lose some of them, and re-climb the mountain has made him a cult figure in the sport.
His 2021 clash with Michael Chandler, which he won by unanimous decision, will go down in UFC folklore while his 2024 defeat to Max Holloway was ESPN’s Fight of the Year.
He has a fan-first mentality which has shone through from his first bout with the UFC to now.
«He’s always done right for the company and the fans, he’s a ‘people fighter,'» coach Trevor Wittman told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto. «His goal when he first got with me was: ‘Every time I fight, when you buy a pay-per-view or a ticket to the arena, you’re going to be so grateful that you bought that ticket.’
«He’s done that.»
But Pimblett believes the end may finally be in sight.
It’s that ruthless attitude that has seen the Liverpudlian surge up the lightweight rankings, taking the likes of Tony Ferguson and Chandler down along the way with a perfect 7-0 record in the UFC going into the Gaethje fight.
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Paddy Pimblett confronts Ilia Topuria in the cage
After knocking out Charles Oliveira in the UFC 317 title fight, Ilia Topuria calls out Paddy The Baddy and the two get into it inside the cage.
Being champion feels ‘inevitable’
To focus on his incredible rise since his UFC debut in 2021 would be to ignore the long road Pimblett has trudged to get to this point.
By the time UFC 324 rolls around, it will be almost 16 years to the day — Jan. 10, 2010 — that he stepped into his Liverpool gym for the first time and decided he wanted to be an MMA fighter.
«Half my lifetime, isn’t it? It’s literally half my lifetime,» Pimblett says.
«So, it’s probably long time coming.»
There has only been one time in all those years, Pimblett says, when he doubted if he could make it to the top. After a title defeat in Cage Warriors, which also left Pimblett requiring surgery on his hand, he became depressed and has said he considered suicide at one stage.
Eventually, the belief came back, and it has only grown to the point Pimblett is assured he will be UFC champion one day.
«I was so down, but I’ve always said that I’m going to be a UFC world champion and once it got signed by the promotion, I knew it was inevitable,» he says.
«It’s something I’ve always said that I was going to do. So, to do it and to prove the people right who’ve supported me the whole time and prove all the doubt is wrong is going to be some feeling.»
