Paddy Pimblett has responded after UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev suggested he’d be willing to defend his title against him if he can get a couple more wins under his belt.
Pimblett is currently 6-0 in the UFC and moved to No.15 in the rankings with his biggest win to date last month when he submitted Bobby Green with a triangle choke, and that accomplishment didn’t go unnoticed by the champion.
“When he deserve, why not?” Makhachev said during a UFC Q&A. “If he won the next couple matches, when he’s going to be like top 10, why not? Because I don’t have some exciting fights in my division. We need some new names.
“I see how he finish King. It was a good performance, and now it’s the time that he has good opponents, when he’s at the top. Now he has to train more. Now it’s all guys who are so dangerous.”
Pimblett has since welcomed the news that Makachev is taking him seriously, and has vowed that he’ll be challenging for his title before long.
“Did you see that where Islam was talking about me the other day?” Pimblett mentioned on his YouTube channel. “‘He’s an exciting fighter,’ and that ‘If he keeps winning, you never know. He could fight for the belt,’ and that.
“You know Islam, we’re coming. We’re coming brother, we’re coming.”
Pimblett might not have been quite so pleased to hear Makhachev’s opinion of his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu game though.
“Brown, maybe purple,” Makhachev suggested when asked if Pimblett deserved his black belt in BJJ.
