If Paddy Pimblett ever shares the octagon with Justin Gaethje again, he plans to be a tad less adventurous.
Gaethje kicked off his 2026 championship campaign by defeating Pimblett for an interim lightweight title at UFC 324 in January before going on to deliver a shocking upset against Ilia Topuria for the undisputed title at UFC White House in June. Since Pimblett’s loss, he has been criticized for not implementing more of his trademark grappling, and has previously admitted to letting his “ego” get in the way of a smarter game plan.
Should he get the chance to rematch Gaethje in the future, not only will Pimblett stand and strike less, he’ll try to avoid it altogether.
“Yeah, if I fought him again, I’d shoot in within 10 seconds,” Pimblett said with a laugh on How U Livin J Piven. “I’d love to get that rematch. If I fought him again, I’d shoot in in the first 10 seconds, put him on his back and choke his ass out.”
That seems like a sound strategy for Pimblett, who hasn’t shied away from trading punches since joining the UFC, but is more highly regarded for his grappling and submission skills. Pimblett rebounded from his loss to Gaethje with a 52-second choke-out over Benoit Saint Denis, adding to his list of UFC finishes that also includes submission victories against King Green, Jordan Leavitt, and Rodrigo Vargas, as well as a brutal ground-and-pound beatdown against Michael Chandler.
Pimblett knows he’s likely on the outside looking in when it comes to Gaethje’s first title defense, as Topuria, No. 1 contender Arman Tsarukyan, and even featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski have all suggested they could challenge Gaethje when he returns in 2027. Retirement is also a possibility for Gaethje, who turns 38 in November, and Pimblett thinks that could be the way Gaethje goes.
“I don’t think he’ll even fight again,” Pimblett said. “I think he will, but at the same time, I don’t know, because he’s never going to beat that high of winning the belt at the White House. Like my coaches said to me, ‘If that was you in that situation, I’d tell you to retire.’ There’s no point in chasing something else when he’s never going to get a better feeling than winning that belt at the White House.”
Pimblett also has unfinished business with Topuria. The longtime rivals have traded barbs and even been involved in physical altercations outside of the cage, but the timing has never worked out for them to actually be booked to fight, with Topuria spending much of his time competing at 145 pounds before making the move to lightweight.
Even though they’re in the same division now, Pimblett would still rather fight for the title than pursue a grudge match with Topuria.
“I’d take a rematch with Gaethje before Ilia, because I want to be a world champion,” Pimblett said. “I hate Ilia, don’t get me wrong… Obviously, I’d rather beat Ilia than beat Justin, but Justin’s got the belt and that’s what we do it for. To be recognized as the best in the world, to be the undisputed champion. That’s been my goal since I was 15, 16, so that’s what I want to do.”
