5 Defining Moments: Paddy Pimblett

There does not seem to be much of a gray area in regards to Paddy Pimblett. People either love him or they hate him.

“The Baddy” has made a name for himself in the Ultimate Fighting Championship in no time, becoming one of the company’s most talked-about personalities in little more than a year. Pimblett will enter his 2023 campaign on a six-fight winning streak that includes a 4-0 record inside the Octagon. The 28-year-old has delivered 15 of his 20 career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission.

As Pimblett awaits word on his next assignment from UFC matchmakers, a look at five of the many moments that have already come to define him:

1. Midas Touch

Pimblett improved to 12-1 and walked away with the vacant Cage Warriors Fighting Championship featherweight title when he buried Johnny Frachey with punches in the first round of their CWFC 78 co-main event on Sept. 10, 2016 at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England. The 5-foot-8 Frenchman bowed out 95 seconds into Round 1. Pimblett tested the waters with teeps to the body, leg kicks and a sneaky but persistent jab. He misfired on a flying knee but managed to back an off-balance Frachey to the fence, at which point he uncorked a clean one-two that resulted in a knockdown. More punches followed as the Atch Academy export turtled in a defensive shell, prompting referee Rich Mitchell to call for the stoppage.

2. A Tenuous Grip

Relentless pressure and timely power punches carried Nad Narimani to a unanimous decision over the favored Pimblett in the CWFC 82 headliner, as he captured the Cage Warriors featherweight crown on April 1, 2017 at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England. Scores were 48-47, 49-46 and 50-45—all for the challenger. The right hand was Narimani’s weapon of choice, and his counterpart struggled to maximize his height advantage while failing to control range with his jab and kicks. Pimblett tried to change course through takedowns, only to be met repeatedly with a strong sprawl and accompanying punches to the head. The takedowns he did complete were often answered by reversals. The slower pace imposed by Narimani proved beneficial, as he managed to grind his way to organizational gold at 145 pounds.

3. Gas Shortage

The once-beaten Soren Bak overcame a harrowing start, kept his emotions in check in the face of considerable adversity and rallied to take a unanimous decision from Pimblett in the CWFC 96 main event on Sept. 1, 2018 at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England. Bak swept the scorecards with 48-44, 48-45, and 48-46 marks from the cageside judges, the victory bringing with it the vacant Cage Warriors lightweight championship. Pimblett was on his game in the first round, where he threatened “The True Viking” with a tight rear-naked choke that might have drawn a white flag out of a lesser man. Bak withstood the Englishman’s efforts and forced him to dig deeper into his bag of tricks. Pimblett eventually ran out of gas after getting outstruck in extended sequences and being drawn into a series of clinches. Bak made his closing argument late in the fifth round, where he climbed to full mount and hammered his visibly fatigued adversary with punches.

4. Impressing the Boss

Pimblett was sensational in his long-awaited Octagon debut, as he cut down Luigi Vendramini with punches in the first round of their UFC Fight Night 191 lightweight showcase on Sept. 4, 2021 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The Brazilian succumbed to blows 4:25 into Round 1. Not all went according to plan for Pimblett. The hubris-infused Next Generation MMA prospect ran into a left hook from the Factory X representative that buckled his knees and led to his being taken down. To his credit, Pimblett stayed composed, regained his faculties and returned to his feet. He turned the tide with a blistering right hook, swarmed with punches and pinned Vendramini to the cage. From there, Pimblett continued to fire punches until the job was done. His foothold at the highest level was now established.

5. Living on the Edge

The surging and increasingly polarizing Pimblett passed his stiffest test to date inside the Octagon, albeit not in convincing fashion, when he was awarded a contentious unanimous decision over Jared Gordon in the UFC 282 co-main event on Dec. 10, 2022 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. All three judges—Douglas Crosby, Chris Lee and Ron McCarthy—struck 29-28 scorecards for Pimblett. Gordon did not shy away from the considerable hype surrounding his charismatic counterpart. The Sanford MMA rep blasted Pimblett with left hooks throughout the fight, attacked his lead leg with sharp kicks and crowded him in the clinch. However, it was not enough to spring the upset. Pimblett performed well in open space, where he let fly with sweeping hooks and leg kicks of his own. Gordon chewed up clock with his commitment to the clinch in the third round but allowed the Next Generation MMA star to break free late in the period and eventually attach himself to the back.