Dana White wishes Paddy Pimblett’s weight didn’t fluctuate so much between fights, but he’s not going to stop the breakout star anytime soon.
Pimblett was victorious with a second-round submission of Jordan Leavitt at UFC London in July, but “The Baddy” spoke to members of the media backstage at UFC San Diego this past Saturday and said his weight shot up to “about 200 [pounds]” since the big win.
On Tuesday, White was asked about Pimblett’s weight gain and says that it can make the matchmakers lives a little bit more difficult.
“It’s not good for you,” White told reporters following DWCS Season 6, Week 4. “We all know that. We all know that fluctuating and cutting that much weight is very bad, and it definitely doesn’t prolong your career. It’s tough on your body and your organs and stuff like that. But he’s a grown man and he can do whatever the hell he wants to do.
“It makes it tough for us, too, because when we’re in the matchmaking room, and we want to throw him in a fight, maybe we want to throw him on a card in a month, month and a half, it hurts us, too. We have to be very specific when we plan fights for him because he’s nowhere close to weight. What you don’t want to do is put that much pressure on him to cut that much weight in that short of amount of time.”
Pimblett is hoping to return by the end of the year, and the UFC President knows that it’s going to take some time for the lightweight contender to get to the lightweight limit.
When asked if he was concerned Pimblett could potentially miss weight and the backlash it would receive, that’s the furthest thing from White’s mind.
“I really don’t give a s*** about backlash, but I care more about him, his health and safety than backlash,” White said.
“That’s none of my business. That’s up to him. If this guy likes food — and listen, he’s preaching to the preacher over here, I like food, too, so I get it. But yeah, that’s totally up to him. It’s his life, it’s his career, it’s his body, and he can do whatever he wants.”
It’s been a meteoric rise for Pimblett since signing with the promotion as he’s begun his octagon tenure with three finishes. For White, seeing how much attention the former Cage Warriors star has gotten is not surprising at all.
“I think we knew he would be right on the cusp of being a big star,” White explained. “You never really know how somebody is going to come over until it happens, but we knew he was going to be big.”
As he said at UFC San Diego, Pimblett is targeting a return to action at UFC 282 in Las Vegas, which is currently scheduled for Dec. 10 at the T-Mobile Arena. And although nothing is signed, sealed, and delivered just yet, White feels the timeline makes sense.
“I like it,” White said. “He’s going to have to lose some weight.”
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