Paddy Pimblett thinks welterweight gives Conor McGregor a major advantage at UFC 329.
McGregor (22-6 MMA, 10-4 UFC) returns to rematch Max Holloway (27-9 MMA, 23-9 UFC) in the July 11 main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Paramount+).
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It’ll be five years since McGregor last competed, which according to FanDuel, has him as a +196 underdog against Holloway, who is a -260 favorite. However, the pair fighting at a weight class where Holloway has never competed has Pimblett confident in McGregor’s chances.
“Personally I think because it’s at welterweight, I can see Conor knocking him out,” Pimblett told UFC on TNT Sports. “Everyone’s counting Conor out and thinks that Max is going to win it. If it goes to the later rounds, yeah, Max definitely probably will start piecing him up on the feet because he’s got that cardio and the volume. But, the fact that it’s at welterweight I think favors Conor because Charles (Oliveira) made Max look small at lightweight. So, imagine how big Conor’s going to look compared to him at welterweight.”
Pimblett (23-4 MMA, 7-1 UFC), who co-headlines UFC 329 against Benoit Saint Denis (17-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC), isn’t surprised to see McGregor return after breaking his leg in a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021.
“I always thought he was going to come back,” Pimblett said. “I don’t think he’d want to end his career on the loss against Poirier, the way he broke his leg and stuff. I don’t think he’d want to finish his career on that. I wouldn’t want to finish my career on that, so I can understand another fighter not wanting to.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Paddy Pimblett: Everyone’s counting Conor McGregor out at UFC 329
