RIsing UFC star Paddy “The Baddy” Pimblett has only three UFC appearances to his name, but he’s already one of the biggest draws in the sport. As with any rising star, Pimblett is enduring his share of criticism, but in a recent UFC.com interview, the Liverpudlian explained how his style and charisma turns, to quote Jurgen Klopp, “doubters into believers”.
“I’ve turned doubters into believers. That’s what I’ve been doing for years, and I’ll continue to do so because a lot of people still doubt me. They still think, ‘Ah, he’s not that good. He’s not this. He’s not that.’ Wait ‘til I’ve got a gold title around my waist.”
How Paddy The Baddy Turns “Doubters Into Believers”
Pimblett, a former Cage Warriors featherweight champion, has enjoyed a meteoric rise to fame since joining the UFC. Has it gone to his head? “I just take it in my stride.
A lot of people wouldn’t be able to handle it. That’s why I know I was born for this. I was born to be in this position because my head is not going to fall out. I’m not going to start going doing mad s***, but I’m just me, and that’s all.”
Nor has Pimblett grown tired of the media circus that crops up every time he fights. “You’ve got to think of everyone.
You can’t just think of the one person that you’re talking to. You’ve got to think of everyone in the situation. Some person is not going to listen to the interview that I’d done last week and answered the question that they’re dying for me to answer.
They might not listen to it. I’m not going to go, ‘Hey you knobhead, go and listen to that interview from last week.’ I’m just going to answer the question.”
Pimblett knows that, for all the hype surrounding him, he is still a few fights away from title contention, even if he believes UFC gold to be inevitable.
“Lightweight is the best division in the sport. Always will be. It’s not like these other divisions where they’re dead-thin. I’m going to have to win six fights, seven fights before I fight anyone ranked. I know that, and I’m not in denial like, ‘Oh I’m going to fight him next, I’m going to fight him next,’ because I’m not.”
Do you think a lightweight title is in Paddy Pimblett’s future? Are you a doubter or a believer? Let us know in the comments.
