Paddy Pimblett has been handed a new place in the UFC lightweight rankings following his impressive victory over Michael Chandler.
Paddy the Baddy took on Chandler at UFC 314 in Miami over the weekend on the event's main card.
And Pimblett defeated Chandler emphatically with a technical knockout in the third round following an onslaught of elbows and punches, earning himself a huge payday in the process.
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The victory means Pimblett's MMA record now stands at 23 victories from 26 fights and only three losses, with the prospect of a title shot very much on the cards should his impressive rise continue.
Speaking in the Octagon immediately after his win over Chandler, Pimblett suggested he'd be keen to face any fighter in the top five of the lightweight rankings as his next opponent.
He namechecked Charles Oliveira, Dustin Poirier, Arman Tsarukyan and Justin Gaethje as he vowed his aim is to win the Lightweight Championship following a showing which earned him Performance of the Night - and seemed to set his sights on Oliveira in particular.
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He said: "I want that world title.
"[People said] I'll never be champ, I'll never get ranked. I'll never be in the top 10. But what now? I won. Dustin, Justin, Charles, or Arman. Any of them.
"I respect Dustin, Justin and Charles. Charles is the biggest legend out of them all. He gets called the best submitting artist the UFC has ever seen. Well I dispute that, I’m here. So me versus Charles."
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The victory and the manner in which Pimblett won has certainly not gone unnoticed and has been reflected in the UFC lightweight rankings, which have now been updated following the weekend's events.
The 30-year-old Liverpudlian has moved into the top 10, rising four places from 12th to eighth in the standings in the process, ahead of ninth-placed Beneil Dariush and Mateusz Gamrot in seventh.
The defeat for Chandler - who has now lost five of his last six MMA bouts - means he has dropped five places in the standings to outside the top 10 in 12th place, with Pimblett's emphatic victory even prompting a furious response from Conor McGregor.
Chandler's professional MMA record now stands at 23 wins wins from 33 matches, with his number of defeats now at 10 following the defeat.
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Chandler departed the Octagon before announcer Bruce Buffer even gave the fight's result, and recently broke his silence on the loss with a short statement on social media.
Along with a picture of him holding hands with his son, Chandler wrote: "Never out of the fight. This picture sums it all up. As long as I’ve got these heartbeats and hands to hold, I’ve already won."
Topics: Paddy Pimblett, Michael Chandler, UFC, MMA
John McDougall