Brendan Schaub still believes that Paddy Pimblett is a future UFC champion.
‘The Baddy’ made his return at UFC 282 last Saturday night on pay-per-view. Despite being just three fights into his journey in the promotion, he’s already a superstar. Brand deals with Barstool Sports, as well as a popular podcast, have helped in spades.
Standing opposite the Scouser last Saturday was Jared Gordon. ‘Flash’ had won four of his last fight bouts prior to UFC 282, but he was still a big underdog. Instead, Gordon nearly sprung the upset and likely should’ve.
During their lightweight co-main event, the British star badly struggled. While Pimblett had moments of success, it was Gordon who largely controlled the action. Despite many fans believing that the underdog deserved the victory, the young prospect instead got the judges’ nod.
In the days since the bout, many have taken the controversial decision to poke fun at Paddy Pimblett, and jump off the bandwagon. One man who isn’t taking that stance is former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub.
On his podcast, the former fighter slammed fighters and the media for kicking Pimblett while he was down. Schaub also proclaimed that eventually, the Brit will be a UFC champion.
“His fame [outweighs] his talent. Will he get there? Yes he will,” stated Schaub on his podcast. “If they take the necessary steps, I fully believe that Paddy will be world champion. He has the mindset for it. I also love how people were saying, ‘Paddy isn’t ready for the big show!’, okay. Do your homework on Paddy Pimblett.”
He continued, “He was selling out giant venues in Liverpool on his own in Cage Warriors before he got to the UFC. So, that doesn’t work, the kid shows up when the pressure is on. The Paddy Pimblett [vs.] Jared Gordon fight was more of a factor of how damn good Jared Gordon is. Paddy Pimblett when he faced an adversary in Jared Gordon who is very skilled, Paddy got away from what made Paddy special. He stopped doing the unconventional stuff, he went back to just striking. He would do some grappling but really he got into a striking battle, and Paddy on the feet isn’t special.”
“Paddy being unconventional and being hard to train for is what makes Paddy special. So he got away from that against Jared Gordon because Jared Gordon is that damn good. Kudos to Jared Gordon, and it was a close fight.”
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