Paddy Pimblett delivered another emphatic first-round finish at UFC London, demolishing Kazula Vargas via rear naked choke, albeit after sustaining a few brutal shots to the head on the way.
Despite the hype surrounding “The Baddy”, he won’t be taking any ranked opposition any time soon, least of Ilia Topuria, with whom he scuffled in the hotel lobby.
Paddy Pimblett Turns Down Topuria Fight, Won’t Take Top 15 Opponent Without Bigger Payday
In his post-fight interview, Paddy claimed that Topuria was riding on his coattails, and wasn’t worth the effort of a fight. “Everyone wants to fight me.
Everyone wants to hang on my coattails. No one knew who Ilia Topuria – ‘hand sanitizer boy’ – was until he tried to start an altercation with me. No one knew who he was. I’m the draw. Everyone wants to fight me.”
Topuria won his own fight earlier on the card via knockout, after, like Pimblett, getting rocked earlier in the round. “I’ll give him his due. It was a good knockout.
It was a very good knockout, especially after taking that head kick in the face. But if I hit him with that head kick like that, I’d finish him. As I said, he’s just ‘hand-sanitizer boy’ to me. A lion doesn’t concern themselves with the opinion of sheep.”
He was impressed with his own performance, too. “That was gangster. That was sick. I said what was going to happen and it happened. I looked a bit chiseled to start, but I’m never in a boring fight, am I? I don’t talk s***.
First-round finish and I got it. 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 a sloppy takedown attempt from me, to be honest. Quite disappointed in my performances, but I got the first-round finish and that’s all that matters.”
After declaring himself “star of the show”, Pimblett quickly snuffed out any notion of his taking on ranked opposition before he gets a more lucrative contract.
“Without being a big-headed tool, I am the star of the show. It’s that simple. Expect me to take over the show. I told you this. This is the ‘Baddy’ show. Swept The O2 right up…
I wouldn’t take a top 15 fight. 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. Not this little standard one.” Do you want to see Pimblett vs Topuria? Let us know in the comments.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYMiIQNTtJQ
