Paddy Pimblett lays down challenge to Conor McGregor and names venue for potential superfight
Paddy Pimblett has set his sights on a welterweight showdown with Conor McGregor, but only if they both secure wins at UFC 239.
The Liverpudlian, who currently sits ninth in the UFC lightweight rankings, will take on Benoit Saint-Denis on the undercard of Conor McGregor's long-awaited return on Saturday night (July 11).
Former two-division champion McGregor, meanwhile, will headline the event against Max Holloway in a rematch of their 2013 meeting, which the Irishman won by unanimous decision.
Speaking ahead of his bout, Pimblett has laid down a challenge to McGregor, who has not fought in the UFC since his defeat to Dustin Poirier in July 2021.
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“The perfect fight for me would be Conor,” he said in an interview with UFC Europe. “It’s mad to be honest because I think … obviously I won seven fights in a row and I don’t think that my stock went up as much as losing my last fight.
"You know, I beat people like Michael Chandler, Bobby Green, Tony Ferguson and people are just like, meh, and then I’ve got me head punched in five rounds and my stock went up.
"I lost but my stock went up because I had a five-round war with a legend like Justin Gaethje but I want that back, you know what I mean? I want to fight him again before he retires. It’s time to get back in the win column.”
Pimblett went on to sound out a showdown fight against McGregor at Madison Square Garden, a contest that has the potential to break viewing records.
“If McGregor wins and I win, I want to fight again before the end of the year,” he said. “I’ll fight him at welterweight in MSG (Madison Square Garden), something like that. We’ve got to let everything unfold, you don’t know what’s going to happen.
"Conor’s got to beat Max, I’ve got to beat BSD. Anything can happen. As we know, fighting sports, one punch, anything can change the whole realm of the game. It can change the butterfly effect, it can change everything for every other opponent.”
For the time being, Pimblett says it is "mad" to be on the same card as McGregor.
"The biggest name in the sport. It’s nice for him to be back. This is probably going to be the most watched UFC of all time," he added.
"I’m not going to be the star of the show on this one, definitely not. Conor is, but I’ll probably be the second star of the show.”
Conor McGregor 'confronted Paddy Pimblett at his house', according to Dan Hooker
Earlier this year, UFC fighter Dan Hooker got people talking after he claimed Pimblett "refused to come outside" after McGregor "drove around to his house" to confront him.
Hooker and Pimblett previously clashed in a heated public feud, with both men making some personal comments about each other ahead of the latter's UFC 324 bout against Justin Gaethje.
As expected, Hooker was scathing in his assessment of the contest.
“For me, it was a sloppy fight, so I can’t say that it was a barnburner," he told Fox Sports. “I want to kick him in the head. Watching Justin Gaethje punch him doesn’t do anything for me. I didn’t inflict any of that damage.
"Was I happy that Gaethje won? Yes, because if Paddy won I wouldn’t be getting my hands on him for a long time."
Hooker continued to stir the pot ahead of UFC 325, where the New Zealand-born fighter lost to Benoit Saint Denis, and at the UFC 325 Media Day, he claimed Conor McGregor once drove to Pimblett's house in Liverpool to confront him.
“It’s common knowledge that he talked s*** about Conor McGregor, and then Conor drove around to his house,” said Hooker. “He sat outside calling the bloke, and Paddy refused to come outside.”
A few years ago, McGregor was in Liverpool to attend the Grand National in Aintree. Here, the former UFC champion went on a three-day party to celebrate the festival.
At the time, footage of McGregor partying with a man in a treehouse emerged, and it turns out 'The Notorious' was searching for Pimblett, meaning Hooker's recollection of the story appeared to be off the mark.
"He was meant to have turned up at my house, but he turned up at the wrong door," Pimblett said on Pub Talk, as per The Mirror. "He was on a mad bender years ago in Liverpool, there was videos of him in a treehouse was with another Scouser at the time.
"My mum had a camera, not a ring doorbell, so obviously I rang my mum and said 'check the cameras there, because if McGregor's knocked at our house it's getting videoed and put on my Instagram immediately' but he never."
Pimblett added: "I wish he did because I would have been like 'Yes Con, what's happening are we going for a bevvy?'"
Topics: Conor McGregor, UFC, Paddy Pimblett
Jack Kenmare