There is a time for meritocracy in combat sports, but with regard to the UFC’s lightweight title picture, that time is not now.
Okay, this might be a misleading start. These pages tend to endorse the idea that it is almost always time for meritocracy, and too often in the UFC’s past, the promotion has elected to operate against that noble guiding principle. Too often, fighters with long winning runs have been overlooked for title shots in favour of more easily promotable personalities.
That brings us to the question now facing the UFC: does it book Paddy Pimblett as Ilia Topuria’s first challenger to the lightweight throne, or someone else?
At UFC 317 on Saturday (28 June), Topuria’s prophetic prediction of a first-round knockout of Charles Oliveira crystallised. With that, “El Matador” became a two-weight champion, collecting the lightweight belt after reigning as featherweight champion from February 2024 until February 2025.
Topuria’s decision to vacate the 145lb strap was fueled by his motivation to chase further accolades at 155lb, where he hoped Islam Makhachev would await. But the Russian had machinations of his own, soon relinquishing the title to eye 170lb glory. As such, Topuria was paired with former champion Oliveira, the most dangerous finisher in UFC history. Topuria obliterated him.
It could have been Arman Tsarukyan in the cage with Topuria, in a clash of two new-age mixed martial artists. Tsarukyan, 28, like Topuria, narrowly outpointed Oliveira last year to earn a title shot, but withdrew from his planned fight with Makhachev in January on one day’s notice – citing a back injury. With Oliveira bouncing back in the meantime, the Brazilian got the nod over Tsarukyan at UFC 317.
But with Tsarukyan looking to prove to the UFC that he can be relied upon, the Armenian-Russian weighed in as the back-up fighter for UFC 317. Topuria berated Tsarukyan for doing so, claiming that the natural lightweight would have had no chance against him and only a slim chance of beating Oliveira again. Tsarukyan did not take kindly to that suggestion. And so, the foundation was laid for a potential showdown between Topuria and Tsarukyan, an honestly intriguing match-up.
However, their minor quarrel cannot come close to the history between Topuria and “Paddy The Baddy”.
Ahead of UFC London in 2022, the Spanish-Georgian confronted the Liverpudlian at the fighter hotel, taking issue with seemingly anti-Georgian tweets from Pimblett, who threw a bottle of hand sanitiser at “El Matador”. Pimblett’s “Hand Sanitiser Boy” nickname did not stick on Topuria, who spoke more coldly of what he would do to Pimblett if the pair were to share a cage.
And three years on, they finally did share a cage. Commentator Joe Rogan beckoned Pimblett into the Octagon in Las Vegas, after Topuria obliterated Oliveira and goaded the 30-year-old. Topuria, a passionate but business-savvy man, resisted the urge to drop his UFC titles and attack Pimblett, though he did shove the Scouser.
UFC president Dana White actually complained about the decision to let Pimblett into the T-Mobile Arena cage, citing safety concerns – as Topuria’s family was in the ring – rather than the prospect that it could sway fans’ thinking.
Yet White needn’t feel so aggrieved. Rogan might just have done the UFC and its president a favour by watering seeds that were already there.
No, Pimblett has not strictly earned a title shot, but he is close. When the Baddy’s early UFC fights saw him getting tagged a bit too frequently, and when he was awarded a lucky decision in 2022, fans believed it was inevitable that one of his most viral claims would come back to bite him: “I’m a Scouser, we don’t get knocked out.” But his last two fights, a quickfire submission of Bobby Green and domination of Chandler, showed his ceiling to be higher than many thought.
They also took him into the lightweight top 10, where it was believed that he might need one more win to challenge for gold. A match-up with Justin Gaethje made sense, but the American has threatened to retire if he doesn’t get a title shot next. This weekend, White jibed that Gaethje probably should retire. Gaethje has already failed in two title fights, and his recent record does not warrant another go.
Yes, that is a meritocratic point. And yes, this writer is about to contradict himself, but: the UFC must now book Topuria vs Pimblett.
Pimblett is not as deserving of a title shot as Tsarukyan, but the hype of a Baddy vs Matador match-up does not only trump that of a bout involving Tsarukyan; it might trump the hype of any other UFC fight right now – even Topuria vs Makhachev, which would pit the pound-for-pound No 2 against the No 1.
There is an argument that Topuria vs Pimblett would be the biggest UFC fight since Conor McGregor vs Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2018. In fact, there would be shades of that rivalry here, with Topuria being Nurmagomedov – despite his fighting style, trash talk, and two-weight champion status drawing comparisons to McGregor. Topuria would be the ‘final boss’ to Pimblett in the way that Khabib was to McGregor. There is also the element of Pimblett aggravating Topuria with statements about the latter’s heritage, although McGregor went a step further in attacking Nurmagomedov’s religion.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a fan who believes Pimblett would beat Topuria; Pimblett is an expert grappler, yes, but his rival is also well-versed in that department, and he is streaks ahead of the Liverpudlian when it comes to striking. And yet… anticipation for the fight would be palpable.
The UFC has lost much allure this year, struggling with a distinct lack of stars and an abundance of weak fight cards. In Topuria vs Pimblett, they have been handed a gift. And the window to make this match-up may be small; pair Pimblett with a top contender, and his streak may collapse, while Topuria could yet do the unthinkable and move up again to challenge Makhachev at welterweight, if the Russian wins gold there.
It may be now or never for the UFC, Topuria and Pimblett. The UFC should pull the trigger and pay off a generational UFC feud.
