Paddy Pimblett is currently unbeaten in the UFC, but one of the promotion’s top-ranked welterweights believes “The Baddy” still hasn't faced a major test since he joined the promotion.
A former Cage Warriors featherweight champion, Pimblett debuted in the UFC in 2021 and scored a first-round knockout against Luigi Vendramini before he submitted back-to-back opponents in his next two bouts.
“The Baddy” took a controversial unanimous decision over Jared Gordon at UFC 282 last year but returned at UFC 296 to defeat Tony Ferguson, and UFC welterweight Gilbert Burns recently shared some praise for Pimblett’s performance against the former interim titleholder.
“He’s still super young,” Burns said on the JAXXON Podcast. “He’s undefeated in the UFC. He beat a couple good guys. Jared Gordon, now Tony. Tony – unfortunately Tony’s not the Tony we all like. I’m still a fan of the guy, he’s a freakin’ legend, but he’s kind of going down now. But [Pimblett] showed up, because Tony - he’s kind of like that old guy, that old shark. If he smells that blood he’s gonna take it.”
Paddy’s win at UFC 296 marked Ferguson’s seventh loss in a row, and although he got his hand raised many fans criticized “The Baddy” for not putting on a more impressive performance against the 39-year-old lightweight.
Burns went on to cite his own experience training with Pimblett as cause to be optimistic for his future, but “Durinho” did admit that he’d like to see how the former Cage Warriors champion handles himself when a fight isn’t quite going his way.
“He still needs to get a test. I still feel he’s still gotta get to that point that's like ‘Let’s see what’s he’s gonna do in that last round now.’ He lost [the] first round, lost [the] second one, let’s see it now. I want to see those tests...When I was in the UK training with him, the guy's serious, [he] takes his training [seriously]…But I think he’s still gotta be tested a little bit.”
Ferguson was easily the biggest name that "The Baddy" has faced in his career thus far, and with five UFC victories now under his belt the 29-year-old is rapidly developing into one of the more recognizable names on the promotion's roster.
A win over "El Cucuy" would have easily vaulted Pimblett into the UFC rankings prior to Ferguson's current run of losses, but the expectation among fans seems to be that the former Cage Warriors champion's next matchup should provide the kind of test that Burns is eager to see.
If you use any quotes from this article, please leave an H/T to MMAKnockout.com for the transcription.
More must-reads: