Paddy Pimblett thinks he would 'obviously' beat Islam Makhachev

Lucas Rezende

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Publish Date: 11/27/2024

Rising lightweight Paddy Pimblett means no disrespect, but he is still coming for the belt.

Still climbing the rankings in the division, British star Paddy Pimblett understands he still has quite a ways to go before he secures himself a title shot. Having just broken into the top 15 and currently sitting at 13, the 29-year-old has already defeated some seasoned veterans in his UFC career, namely Tony Ferguson and King Green and remains undefeated in the Octagon after six consecutive outings.

Paddy Pimblett firmly believes he could beat Islam Makhachev

Although he has no fights booked, Pimblett still enjoys talking about his future in the long run. That being the case, the 'Baddy' even shared his opinion on current champion Islam Makhachev and whether or not Pimblett thinks he could beat him. In an interview on podcast StillTalkingShow, the lightweight showed demonstrated confidence, while remaining respectful towards the Russian.

“Of course, people always say, ‘Do you think you’d beat Islam Makhachev? I’m like, ‘Obviously.’ You’ve got to. Do you think I’m going to sit here and just be like, ‘No, he’d beat me?’ Then I’m not a fighter. I’m a coward. I respect Islam,” Pimblett said. “He’s a great champion. People will probably laugh at me for saying this, but obviously, I think I’d beat him. I don’t think any man on this planet would beat me if we got in a cage, I think I’d beat everyone.”

In Pimblett's opinion, the champion stands no chance

Despite trying to show respect towards Makhachev, Pimblett did show his more taunting side when asked whether or not the champion would have a chance against him in the Octagon. In the Brit's opinion, there is simply no chance he could be defeated by Makhachev in a fight.

“In my mind, no,” Pimblett said. “I always say, anyone in your division or anyone that you’re rivals with can beat you, you’re in the wrong sport. Go and do footy or rugby or cricket or basketball or hockey, where you’ve got a team, you can say, ‘It was fault, it was his fault.’ In a fight, it’s only going to be your fault, no one else’s fault.”

Currently a six-fight winning streak in the UFC, Paddy Pimblett has defeated the aforementioned King and Ferguson in his most recent outings. Before that, the Baddy also scored wins over Jared Gordon, Jordan Leavitt, Rodrigo Vargas ,and Luigi Vendramini, with only two of those wins going the distance. In fact, the 29-year-old has not lost since Cage Warriors days, when he dropped a unanimous decision to Soren Bak in September 2018.