Paddy Pimblett's star power is all he needs, according to his UFC champion.
Liverpool's Pimblett stormed into the UFC in early 2022, decimating Luigi Vendramini and captivating fight fans ever since. Now 6-0 in the promotion and ranked No. 15 in the lightweight division, it's time for the former Cage Warriors champion to consider a shot at a coveted UFC title.
"He's at the point where I think, one more - especially because of his name - if he gets like a Hooker or a Chandler, and he gets past one of them guys. I see them giving him a title shot," Muhammad remarked. "... When you're thinking about lightweight, Oliveira just lost, Gaethje just lost, Hooker already lost to Islam. If Islam gets past Arman ... If McGregor comes back and he beats Chandler, he's there. But there aren't a lot of names right now for Islam..."in a fight that's been anticipated for what feels like an eternity. Meanwhile, Dan Hooker, fresh off a victory over Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 305, would make an excellent stylistic matchup for Pimblett.
Dan Hooker currently rides a three-fight winning streak, with upset victories over Jalin Turner and Mateusz Gamrot / Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports"I was thinking the other week, the perfect route to the title would have been Moicano and then Charles Oliveria," Pimblett said. "He's like rank 2. That's what O'Malley did. O'Malley went from, like, rank 11 to rank 1 or something.
It's definitely not unheard of for a fighter to make a leap in the rankings as Pimblett describes. O'Malley is a prime example, and recently Steve Erceg was granted a title shot despite being No. 10 at flyweight.Mathew is a UK-based combat sports journalist and graphic designer. He joined MMAKO when it was first founded in 2023. Find his work on The Fight Fanatic & Heavy on UFC. He can be contacted on mr@thefightfanatic.
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