‘The Baddy’ has the chance to send his stock into overdrive when he returns in the co-main event of UFC 314.
Paddy Pimblett is set to face Michael Chandler on April 12 in Miami where a win could catapult the star into an even bigger league.
The Brit is incredibly confident that he will stop the former title challenger and he certainly isn’t the only one that believes that Saturday night in Miami will belong to Pimblett.
Whilst he has become one of the biggest stars in the sport since arriving in the UFC in 2021, the scouser was already one of the most talked about fighters away from the Octagon at that time.
Pimblett made a lot of noise in Cage Warriors before making the switch to the point where he made the bold choice to turn down the advances of the MMA leader on multiple occasions.
Paddy Pimblett wanted to continue developing whilst earning good money in Cage Warriors before joining the UFC
With 14 fights in the promotion, Paddy Pimblett has spent the majority of his career competing in the iconic yellow gloves of European promotion Cage Warriors.
‘The Baddy’ gained worldwide attention during this period by producing highlight reel finishes with a personality and energy that demanded eyeballs.
Despite wanting to compete in the UFC, Pimblett turned a contract down to compete inside the Octagon on two separate occasions for two main reasons.
He wanted to be ready for the UFC before signing on the dotted line and there was no rush to leave Cage Warriors at that time in his career.
One of those offers came in 2016 after Pimblett won the featherweight title but as his run of form showed before he moved up to lightweight, the young fighter still had a lot to learn.
He also wasn’t tempted to make this potentially risky play due to the fact that Cage Warriors were offering him more money at the time because of the star status that he was already acheiving.
It seemed inevitable that Pimblett would finally make the jump in 2018 with the Octagon heading to his home city of Liverpool for the first time.
The need for hand surgery and a pre-planned vacation saw ‘The Baddy’ miss out on this opportunity whilst his teammate, Molly McCann, made her debut after signing to the UFC from Cage Warriors.
After a loss to Soren Bak in 2018, Pimblett feared that his risk hadn’t paid off and that after turning down the UFC and suffering a defeat, he wouldn’t make it to the Octagon.
Having producing his second consecutive first-round finish in 2021 to bounce back, one of the most talked about fighters outside of the UFC finally joined the party later that year and he hasn’t looked back since.
Paddy Pimblett categorically made the right call
Paddy Pimblett’s career doesn’t necessarily work as a lesson to all young and promising fighters because not every athlete is going to be able to turn down the UFC twice and still end up on the biggest stage.
‘The Baddy’ had clear star quality that allowed him to be a bit more picky but his trajectory does provide an invaluable lesson when it comes to waiting for the right time.
Pimblett suffered two major setbacks during his Cage Warriors career in and around the UFC trying to secure his signature.
He waited until he was ready to fight at the highest level after learning some vital lessons and has now produced six consecutive wins in what is arguably the toughest division in the promotion.
