Pimblett Calls Topuria A 'Fat Featherweight'

Paddy Pimblett has watched Ilia Topuria get stopped on the White House lawn — and has some thoughts.

The Liverpudlian returns at UFC 329 on July 11 against Benoit Saint Denis, but the fight already generating the most attention from his corner of the lightweight division is the one with Topuria that keeps hovering just out of reach. It would have happened if Pimblett had beaten Gaethje in January. Gaethje then went and stopped Topuria at UFC Freedom 250. Pimblett delivered his verdict on Topuria's performance and his doubts about what comes next for the former champion.

"Gaethje took him into that dogfight, dragged him into it, and Ilia's never had that. Ilia's never had to come back from adversity. Ilia's only ever been the hammer. He's never been the nail. That's why after that fight with Justin that I had, I knew I had to come back stronger and better because I've done it before. I don't think Ilia Topuria ever comes back the same,” Pimblett

He went further on the psychological dimension. Then came the offer, wrapped in a challenge. On the physical matchup, Pimblett was characteristically blunt. He has never been convinced by Topuria's credentials at lightweight and said so in terms that leave no room for diplomatic interpretation.

"I'd happily be his first fight back. We'll find out what sort of man he is, if he does come back and when he does come back. He's gonna have to look himself in the mirror and say 'What, I just got my head smashed in and I need to come back.' And you never know, he might not have the cojones to do it.

"He's a featherweight. That's why we have weight classes. He thinks he's a lightweight. He's not a lightweight, lad. I'm a lightweight. He's a fat featherweight and I would take his punches all day and laugh in his face and punch him in the face and he'll know about it,” Pimblett

First, Pimblett has Saint Denis on July 11. The Frenchman is four straight finishes into his own momentum and is very much the large lightweight that Pimblett claims Topuria is not. Getting past him is the prerequisite for everything else.