Dana White has been rather impressed with his newest British superstar and thinks it’s time for a step up in platform.
Paddy Pimblett has been perfect thus far inside the UFC octagon, securing three back-to-back finishes in his first handful of appearances. Starting things off at the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas, Nevada in Sept. 2021, Pimblett received a raucous ovation after his first-round knockout of Luigi Vendramini despite the small crowd in attendance.
It’s been off to the races in “The Baddy’s” two fights that followed as both took place in London where he’s had his fellow countrymen eating out of the palm of his hand from the start of the walk out to the arena exit. Seeing all the numbers on just his social media accounts alone, the UFC boss, White, is getting a very familiar feeling as the ascent continues for the 27-year-old lightweight prospect.
“This kid — to talk about championship stuff right now, it’s a little too soon, but he’s got that Conor McGregor vibe,” White told media after Contender Series season 6 episode 1 (h/t TheMacLife). “When he walks out, when he’s in the arena, the way that the fans receive him, the way that the media covers him, the way that the people who search for content…
“I wanna show you something, this is pretty amazing. On my Instagram, this is me, not UFC or whatever … Paddy Pimblett’s faceoff … the main event, the heavyweights, [Curtis] Blaydes and [Tom Aspinall] did 203,000 views on my Instagram. Paddy Pimblett’s faceoff did 1.7 million. Isn’t that crazy? I’ll give you another example, ‘F—k It Friday’ is massive. Massive. It did 1.3 million on mine. [Then] it was Molly [McCann] drinking the Howler Head [whiskey] with the thing (wig) on, that did 2 million. So, those two together, yeah, they’re powerful, man.”
Before Pimblett’s most recent victory over Jordan Leavitt this past Saturday, he was getting the feeling that it was time for a change of scenery and that he has begun to outgrow the O2 Arena. Well, he just may get his wish as White seems to have a brief, but solid, idea of where his new star will be headed next.
“I think what we do next is we take him to either Boston or New York and he ends up on pay-per-view then you bring him to Vegas,” White said.
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VIDEO STEW
MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck chats with Anthony Smith.
MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck chats with Daniel Rodriguez.
Embedded 2.
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MMA master classes with aljamain sterling and al iaquinta in Georgia
DC ballin’.
LISTEN UP
Heck of a Morning. MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck discusses if Paddy Pimblett vs. Tony Ferguson would make sense after UFC London.
SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE
Oh, Chatri…
Chatri was all sourpuss but at least he did the belt presentation.
Dana White (for the Ngannou win) chose to hide in a closet backstage.
Pick your poison. pic.twitter.com/Oz6114H2jV
— Jonathan of Kowloon & Bangsar (@GlobeSvcs) July 26, 2022
To the ring?
…Think it’s time to add a boxing belt to the collection! @ShowtimeBoxing pic.twitter.com/cDeKosSiBW
— shop CrisCyborg.com (@criscyborg) July 25, 2022
Shot caller.
October 22nd Abu Dhabi? Brandon Royval, let’s do this! pic.twitter.com/xFnTlphq2B
— Muhammad Mokaev (@muhammadmokaev) July 26, 2022
Welcome.
い、ら、っ、し、ゃ、い、ま、せ pic.twitter.com/rR79f5Davv
— マリアパ ®︎本店 (@MarrionapparelK) July 26, 2022
Who’s next?
Ready for the next challenge pic.twitter.com/RBRE9phG4F
— Valentina Shevchenko (@BulletValentina) July 26, 2022
They’re always better.
Your official #UFC277 Artist Series poster has landed
[ Get the official design on @UFCStore | Design by Texas-native Alexis_Art/IG ] pic.twitter.com/5bTB8W7FHr
— UFC (@ufc) July 26, 2022
Diamond.
— The Diamond (@DustinPoirier) July 26, 2022
Heads up, Chicago!
ABC conference notes.
Poll of room’s commissioners finds none would allow transgender woman to fight cisgender woman; nor transgender man vs. cisgender man #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Dr. Nitin Sethi: Should transgender women compete in women’s sports?
Man behind me from Connecticut commission: “no” #ABCconference— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Dr. Nitin Sethi: Another example: Is this a safe bout (with respect to medical concerns)? #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Dr. Nitin Sethi: IOC allows trans men (transition from female to male) athletes to compete without restrictions #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Dr. Nitin Sethi believes trans individuals in combat sports needs studied on medical grounds, with the goal of protecting health and safety of all combatants as well as keeping bouts fair. #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Dr. Nitin Sethi: We should support transgender rights, regardless of if they can fight or not. Encourages calm discussion. #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
CSAC exec director Andy Foster says Calif has regulations for transgender athletes. Adds “if you choose to license this, there’s a big media component that goes with this.” #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
CSAC exec director Andy Foster: Matchmaking with trans athletes requires relying on doctors. #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
CSAC exec director Andy Foster encourages equal and fair treatment of trans athletes. “Be respectful.” #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Greg Sirb, exec director in PA re trans combat athletes: I don’t think there’s a right answer to this. “You can’t change the transgender [individual’s] size. … And that’s where I have the problem.” #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Dr. Nitin Sethi: Just because Lia Thomas beat everyone in swimming doesn’t mean a trans woman would beat all the women in boxing. #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
CSAC director Andy Foster explaining the process of allowing trans athletes to compete. There are levels of complexity and detail for licensure of trans athletes, such as TUEs as factor. #ABCconference
— Scott Fontana (@Scott_Fontana) July 26, 2022
Picking favorites.
My favorite fight of my career… So far https://t.co/j2dIUgiJHV
— Matt Brown (@IamTheImmortal) July 26, 2022
Incredible.
— Paulo Costa ( Borrachinha ) (@BorrachinhaMMA) July 26, 2022
Strike a pose.
Striking a JoJo pose #WeAreONE #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/4ZjKjpQ2tc
— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) July 27, 2022
FIGHT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Ode’ Osbourne (11-4, 1 NC) vs. Tyson Nam (20-12-1); UFC San Diego, Aug. 13
Miguel Baeza (10-3) vs. Yohan Lainesse (8-1); UFC 279, Sept. 10
Jake Collier (13-7) vs. Chris Barnett (22-8); UFC 279, Sept. 10
Cub Swanson (28-12) vs. Jonathan Martinez (16-4); UFC Fight Night, Oct. 15
Katlyn Chookagian (18-4) vs. Manon Fiorot (9-1); UFC 280, Oct. 22
FINAL THOUGHTS
Paddy is definitely a star, but the Conor comparisons inside the cage aren’t exactly there just yet. Maybe they don’t need to be though?
Thanks for reading!
EXIT POLL
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