Ilia Topuria and Paddy Pimblett might finally be ready to fight each other.
For years, Topuria and Pimblett have been embroiled in a heated rivalry, but the two have yet to settle things in the cage. After Topuria won the lightweight title last year, Pimblett even entered the cage to set up a showdown between the two. Ultimately, that never materialized as Topuria took time off for personal reasons and Pimblett lost an interim lightweight title fight with Justin Gaethje in January.
But after Topuria
also lost to Gaethje in their title unification bout at UFC White House, the path is now clear for the two to settle their bad blood, and Topuria says there’s even the possibility that their rivalry will headline the next season of The Ultimate Fighter.
“Paddy, Paddy, Paddy… I’ll eat him up like the sausage he is!” Topuria told ABC.es. “There are no easy opponents. Paddy’s a guy to be reckoned with, but come on, with that head of his, you just aim the punch that way and hit him.
“I’ve heard some rumors [about The Ultimate Fighter], but I haven’t had any conversations with the UFC. I don’t know what their interests are. When we resume talks with them, we’ll see if we’re on the same page. There are still good times ahead, but what matters most to me is getting back to training, feeling healthy and well, and then we’ll be ready for whatever comes up.”
While there’s still no official word on whether or not the UFC is interested in Topuria and Pimblett coaching opposite each other on The Ultimate Fighter, Pimblett has also called for it, suggesting the two could “bring the ratings back” to the program. Also, unsurprisingly, Pimblett thinks he would get the better of Topuria, both on the show and in the cage, which Topuria disputes.
“If you listen to him, he’ll say, ‘He beats me at everything,’ but I beat him at anything I want,” Topuria said. “After a loss, it’s hard to talk about these things, but Paddy, on the ground, just grappling, doesn’t win a single point against me. He doesn’t take me down, he doesn’t pass my guard, he doesn’t do anything. I don’t see him as being any better than me on the ground. He’s a pushover, he’s got a sausage body, he thinks his size gives him an advantage, but he can’t do anything.
“He’s not like Justin. Justin is a dog; he knows how to dodge punches, he’s very experienced, and he’s very freestyle. He does things that, to me, are poorly executed, but they’re effective. Paddy has nothing, no knockout punch, no unexpected takedowns, no submissions out of nowhere. Paddy is very predictable; you can see his intentions.”
And if the Pimblett fight does materialize and Topuria looks as impressive as he thinks he will, then “El Matador” believes that even the welterweight title fight with Islam Makhachev that he lost when Gaethje upset him could be back on the table.
“Everything can make sense again, of course,” Topuria said. “Yeah, it’s going out there for my next fight, knocking out Paddy, and everyone’s going to be like, ‘WOW, look how focused Ilia is!’ You’re only as good as your last fight.”
