Paddy Pimblett has told of how he feared his days as a party animal in Liverpool after winning his first title would cost him his future.
Pimblett won Cage Warriors gold at the age of just 21, and quickly embraced the celebrity lifestyle in his native Liverpool. He would party with friends at nightclubs and lived the lifestyle of a much bigger star than he was at the time.
Shortly after controversially defeating Julian Erosa in his first title defence, the scouser was dethroned by Nad Narimani. After losing another fight to Soren Bak, he feared that if he ever made it to the UFC that he may just be a journeyman, but has since turned it around and is now on the verge of a top ten spot.
Paddy Pimblett admits he feared he might become UFC journeyman
Paddy Pimblett isn’t the only athlete in his family; his uncle Frank was a prospective soccer star whose attitude and drinking ended up costing him a career at the top level. ‘Paddy the Baddy’ feared he was about to have the same issue after winning Cage Warriors gold, but has since turned it around.
“His drinking and his partying and his womanizing, he would have been the best footballer of his generation if it weren’t for that,” Pimblett said of his uncle during an interview with One on One MMA.
“And I nearly went down the same path when I was 21 and I won that world title and thought I was the bee’s knees.
“I nearly went down the exact same path partying all the time and just being an idiot. So I’m glad I had that time on Cage Warriors and it sorted me out because I could have ended up like our Frank, he ended up going to Australia and being a legend for like Brisbane or something, he was too good for that league.
“No manager in England would touch him with a barge pole because of how bad his attitude was… He could have been the best football player England’s ever seen but instead his attitude outside of the football pitch pushed him out of the way of that.
“That genuinely could have happened to me and that’s why I’m glad when I got the first two offers off the UFC when I was younger I said ‘no’. Because I know now even more the fame of the UFC is 10-fold of Cage Warriors and it got a little bit to my head when I won the Cage Warriors title.
“People started asking me for pictures in Liverpool and Manchester. So if I would have gone to the UFC back then I know for a fact I would have gone 3-6 and got cut. The fact that I’ve steadily and gradually built my career up the way I have has helped me so much.”
Paddy Pimblett now faces Michael Chandler for UFC top ten ranking
Once Pimblett did make his way to the UFC, he quickly began to rise through the ranks and has been showing his improvements fight by fight. Now one of the biggest stars in the promotion, he could catapult himself into serious contention with a win over Michael Chandler at UFC 314.
He faces the former Bellator champion in a five-round co-main event that could land him the number seven spot in the division, or even higher. He is currently ranked at number 12 after a stunning submission win over King Green at UFC 304 last summer
Pimblett twice turned down the UFC on the way up in Cage Warriors, but finally signed in 2021 and immediately made an impact Stateside.
