Drew Dober believes UFC fans are eager to see him punch Paddy Pimblett in the mouth.
After Pimblett escaped with a highly-controversial unanimous decision over Jared Gordon in December, the entire lightweight division has been chomping at the bit to get a crack at the Liverpudlian. That includes Drew Dober who is fresh off his third-straight win inside the Octagon.
With knockouts against Terrance McKinney, Rafael Alves, and Bobby Green in his last three outings, Dober is ready for a big-name opponent and he has his sights set on the UK’s latest MMA sensation. Sitting down with Anthony Smith and Michael Bisping on the Believe You Me podcast, Dober discussed his interest in finding out firsthand if scousers can be knocked out.
“Well, that’s one exciting fight,” Dober said. “I think everyone wants to see me punch Paddy in the mouth and to test his scouser theory, but it’s really all in his field. I’m not above fighting anybody, especially someone as well-liked as this guy, but the ball is in his court. I’ve accepted. I’m all for it. I’m ready to go whenever he wants. Now we’re just waiting on him.”
Asked if he was formally offered the fight by the UFC, Dober admitted he had not, but has openly expressed interest in the matchup on social media and hopes Paddy Pimblett will rise to the challenge that Dober had laid down.
“I wouldn’t say I was offered. I’ve been putting my name up in the mix to fight him. Now we’re just figuring out what the UFC wants to do with Paddy. When he has x-many followers on Instagram, he has to call the shots. We’ll see what he wants and I’ll agree to it.”
Paddy Pimblett vs. Drew Dober targeted for May 6th at UFC 288. #UFC288 #MMATwitter #ufc pic.twitter.com/KldLkNDWTO
— MMA PACK (@pack_mma) February 21, 2023
Drew Dober Recalls Sharing the Octagon with Islam Makhachev
Before rattling off three impressive wins in 2022, Drew Dober shared the ring with the reigning UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev. Meeting at UFC 259 in March 2021, Makhachev earned what was his seventh straight victory at the time. Looking back on his matchup with the current 155-pound king, Dober said that it wasn’t so much the strength of Makhachev, but his incredible fight IQ that kept Dober stimied throughout the course of the contest.
“I think Islam’s very technically talented,” Dober explained. “What I felt in the cage wasn’t so much just sheer strength, but more so the knowledge of where he needs to be at every moment. I felt like I was stuck in a hallway and all the doors were locked. There was nothing I could do or get out. He doesn’t make mistakes and I think the frustrating part was he chose not to make any mistakes. He chooses not to take risks. He wins rounds. He wins decisions and to me it’s not the most exciting way to win a fight.”
As far as Islam Makhachev’s instant classic with Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284, Drew Dober believes Makhachev won the fight, but Volkanovski delivered a blueprint that lightweight contenders can work off of going forward.
“I had Islam winning that fight, however, Volk caught everyone by surprise by how well he did so I left that fight with a notepad thinking about all the things Volk kind of displayed in that fight and that’s what the lightweight division needs to do against their champion.”
