Paddy Pimblett plans to mix the martial arts at UFC 324 and maybe not in a way most would expect.
During his 7-0 UFC run “The Baddy” has earned a reputation for his smothering grappling and rock-hard chin. Those skills will be put to the test when he fights Justin Gaethje in the Jan. 24 main event with an interim lightweight title on the line.
One could fairly assume Pimblett would focus on wrestling Gaethje to defuse the American’s legendary knockout power, but Pimblett told TNT Sports he will go blow for blow with “The Highlight.”
“I’ll keep it on the feet with him,” Pimblett said. “There’s the blueprint there to beat him, Max done it. Everyone underestimates my striking. Everyone thinks I’m just going to going to come in and I’m going to take him down and I’m not. He had an absolute war with [Michael] Chandler and I pieced Chandler up.
“So, I know MMA math doesn’t work, but you’ll see come Jan. 24, when we have a perfect game plan and we finish him within three.”
Even given Pimblett’s confidence, it would be surprising to see him dispense with the grappling completely. In recent wins over Michael Chandler, King Green, and Tony Ferguson, Pimblett used his wrestling to neutralize and frustrate his opponents. He also finished Green on the ground, becoming just the third fighter ever to submit the 52-fight veteran.
Gaethje was a Division-I All-American in his collegiate wrestling days and he’s typically used his elite takedown defense to keep fights on the feet, but Pimblett believes he can take the fight to the mat if he has to.
“I don’t wrestle like a normal person,” Pimblett said. “I don’t shoot double legs and single legs and wrestle like a normal person does. I do everything differently. I’m not normal, so he’s not going to be able to get a sparring partner that grapples like me or strikes like me because I’m a weirdo.
“I’m honest about it, I’m very awkward. You can’t really get a sparring partner in to do me because I’m so awkward, so I’m looking forward to fighting him as I say. He’s a legend. He’s someone I’ve always loved watching, so to get the chance to actually get in the cage and fight with him is unbelievable. I can’t wait to have Justin Gaethje on my résumé. It’s going to be something that will last forever, part of my legacy. I’m looking forward to it, I just hope he doesn’t retire once I beat him.”
A win over Gaethje would not only earn Pimblett his first UFC title, it would set him up for a matchup with longtime rival and undisputed champion Ilia Topuria. UFC CEO Dana White has positioned the UFC 324 main event winner for a unification bout, but Pimblett is aware that even if he’s victorious at the promotion’s 2026 kickoff show, there will still be critics of his credentials.
“It’s going to be the same,” Pimblett said. “When I beat Chandler, everyone was like, ‘He’s old. He’s 2-5 in UFC.’ When I beat Justin, it’s going to be, ‘He’s old, he’s about to retire.’ No matter who I beat. When I beat Ilia, it’ll be, ‘He was never that good.’ So it doesn’t matter who I beat, the goalposts get moved.”
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