Paddy Pimblett admitted to disappointment after suffering his first defeat in UFC in a brutal bout with Justin Gaethje, though promised that the sport “hadn’t seen the last” of the British fighter.
Pimblett, who entered the fight in Las Vegas at 7-0, survived a punishing five-round affair still standing, losing narrowly with scores of 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46.
The experienced Gaethje used his nous and power to keep the 31-year-old Liverpudlian on the back foot, winning the interim lightweight title and denying Pimblett a shot at Ilia Topuria.
The American perhaps benefitted, though, from an unspotted poke to the eye having already been warned about an earlier incident, although was largely in control of the contest.
Pimblett — who has previously declared “I’m a Scouser, we don’t get knocked out” — withstood significant punishment across 25 minutes, and felt that his defeat was ultimately fair.
“I wanted to be walking away with that belt, and I know how tough I am anyway; I don’t need to prove it to anyone,” Pimblett said in the cage after the fight.
“I wanted to leave with that belt, but there’s no man I’d rather lose to than the ‘Highlight’, someone I grew up watching. It shows why he’s a legend, right there.
“I thought 48-47 was a fair scorecard. I’m not gonna lie, he hit me with a body shot in that first round, hit me right in the solar plexus, and it got me. I thought I was winning the round up until that point. I’m 31, you haven’t seen the last of me.”
Pimblett will remain ranked in the top 10 and well placed to earn another title shot in the future.
Gaethje, meanwhile, is likely to take on Topuria later this year when the incumbent lightweight champion returns to the sport in the spring. Topuria, 28, has been taking a break from mixed martial arts due to a “difficult moment” in his personal life.
“Scousers cannot get knocked out!” Gathje said in his post-fight interview, paying tribute to Pimblett. “This Scouser does not get knocked out, what a f***ing gangster.
“I knew that I had to put him on his back foot. He’s very dangerous and has great timing. I had to work really hard, but champions move forward, and I just showed you why that is a must. I’ve just really got to trust my coach, ‘move him backwards and put your head on his chest’. I landed some mean ground and pound, that s*** was nasty!”
