Paddy Pimblett doesn’t know who his next opponent will be, but hopes Arman Tsarukyan doesn’t get a title shot against Ilia Topuria before he does.
Pimblett (23-3 MMA, 7-0 UFC) has steadily climbed the ladder of the UFC’s lightweight division since his arrival in 2021. He’s undefeated in the promotion and has racked up five Performance of the Night-earning finishes. “The Baddy” recently passed arguably his toughest test to date by stopping Michael Chandler at UFC 314. He hopes his next outing will be for gold.
“Hopefully, it is going to be me vs. the chorizo next,” Pimblett said on his YouTube channel. “And I think that’s what all the Americans want, because every American I bumped into keeps saying, ‘When are you going to smash that sausage’s head in?’ I’m hoping that gets sorted, but I understand that I am like ranked nine or something. So, other people probably are more deserving, but ‘posh boy’ definitely isn’t – little rich boy Arman.”
Tsarukyan (22-3 MA, 9-2 UFC) saw his opportunity to fight for the title get away from him at the last minute when he had to pull out of a championship bout against then-champ Islam Makhachev during UFC 311 fight week. Due to this, the current titleholder Topuria (17-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) has said he would rather vacate the title than give Tsarukyan a chance. Tsaruykan offered Topuria a $500,000 bet to entice him.
“Spoiled rich baby trying to pay their way out of things,” Pimblett said. “That’s why he quit when he was making weight in a bath like a little b*tch. Arman’s irrelevant. No one cares about him.”
Pimblett is well aware that, despite an intriguing faceoff inside the octagon with Topuria at UFC 317, he may not get the next title shot because he’s too far down the rankings. The next likely option for Topuria is Justin Gaethje (26-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC), who currently sits at No. 5. The former interim champ would be a fresh matchup for Topuria, but it would be for Pimblett as well.
“As I always say, I’ve got nothing but respect for Justin, but I keep seeing in interviews him saying he doesn’t want to fight me,” Pimblett said. “I think the only fight to make is me and Ilia.”
Sitting right behind Gaethje at No. 6 in the current UFC lightweight rankings is Dan Hooker, who has recently chirped about Pimblett.
“Seen Dan Hooker talking sh*t the other day as well,” Pimblett said. “I used to like Dan Hooker. Now, you can eat sh*t.”
