Paddy Pimblett has plenty of options after a win in UFC London. However, he isn’t interested yet in Ilia Topuria or any other top 15 ranking opponents.
As the biggest fan favorite at the O2 Arena on Saturday, the 27-year-old Scouser relished in his victory over Kazula Vargas, but barely got a chance to celebrate before hearing about a callout from Topuria following a viral hotel altercation between the two prior to the event.
After his own win earlier in the night, Topuria bashed Pimblett and said he wanted to face “that blonde b****” as his next opponent.
” “Everyone wants me to fight them,” Pimblett stated at UFC London’s post-fight press conference. “Everyone wants to hang on my coattails. No one knew who hand sanitizer boy was until he tried to start an altercation with me. No one knew who he was. I’m the draw. Everybody wants to beat me .”
Pimblett gave credit where credit is due and said he was impressed by Topuria’s own finish at UFC London, a violent second-round knockout of Jai Herbert to kick off the main card.
That said, Pimblett isn’t interested in entertaining the idea of Topuria as his next opponent no matter how badly the Georgian fighter might want it.
“His due. It was a great knockout.” Pimblett stated. “It was a very good knockout, especially after taking that head kick in the first round. However, if he hit me with the head kick in round one, I’d finish him.
“But, as I said, he is just a hand sanitizer boy. A lion doesn’t concern himself with the opinions of sheep.”
Pimbett was critical of Vargas’s early performance and then turned the tables by submitting the fighter to the ring.
It wasn’t perfect, but “The Baddy” can only promise that the crowd will always leave happy after watching him fight, and he certainly delivered that kind of enthusiasm with his win.
“That was gangster,” Pimblett said. “That was sick. I said what was going to happen and it happened. Although I was a little chiseled when I started, I am never in boring fights. I’m not a ***. talker. It was my first round finish. As soon as I got that little judo throw and put him on his back, I was like, ‘Yeah, it’s over now.’ I was thinking of a flying triangle, but he kept holding my hand. Imagine how much it would have went off if I got that?
” It was an honest attempt at a lazy takedown. Although I was disappointed with my performance, I managed to get the first round finish .”
In Pimblett’s eyes, he should have been Saturday’s main event, given the enthusiastic reaction from Londoners.
“I am not a large-headed, but I’m the star of this show,” Pimblett stated. “It’s that simple.
“Expect me to take over the show. I told you this. This is the ‘Baddy’ show. You sucked The O 2 up .”
With Topuria seemingly out of the running, Pimblett isn’t sure who will be next for him, but he’s not rushing ahead when it comes to his level of competition in the lightweight division.
While he’s always game for a challenge, the 2-0 budding UFC star also understands that he’s not earning massive paychecks in his career just yet — and until that changes, he’s not going to try tackling the best fighters in the world.
“I wouldn’t take a top 15 fight,” Pimblett said. “I’ll be honest, I wouldn’t. Add some more zeroes to my contract and then I will. I think I proved tonight that I deserve a new contract. This little standard .”
is not enough.
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