Paddy Pimblett is one of the hottest new prospects on the UFC roster, a man who made such an impression off his first UFC fight in September that he racked up over 750,000 followers on Instagram. The jury’s still out on whether Pimblett will be able to survive in the sharktank that is the UFC 155 pound division, but one thing is for sure: “The Baddy” has no intention of fighting any great white sharks on his current contract.
“F—k that. I’m not fighting a top ten on the money I’m on, lad,” Pimblett said in an interview with James English. “Nick Peet was saying he’d like to see me against Tony Ferguson. And, lad, I’d like to see me against Tony Ferguson, but not on the contract I’m on now. F—k that. Get paid that money to fight Tony Ferguson, lad. Yeah, he’s still one of the best 155ers in the world, lad. I want six f—king figures, lad, then I’m fighting him.”
If that sounds like a familiar refrain, it’s because it’s pretty much exactly what another hot young UFC prospect, Sean O’Malley, is saying … just without the Scouser accent.
It’s probably a smart move for Paddy, who has quickly discovered that just being a hot UFC fighter comes with its own lucrative opportunities, like a recent ‘seven figure deal’ with Barstool Sports to be a brand ambassador and content creator for Barstool Sports.
Who knows how that breaks down exactly, but it’s a sign Pimblett is a hot commodity, and so long as the UFC isn’t in a rush to renegotiate his contract, he’s in no rush to start fighting way up the rankings.
We imagine we’re only going to see more and more of this as the UFC continues to bring in tons of fighters off Dana White’s Contender Series, which may add hype to names but certainly doesn’t add zeros to fight purses.