Paddy Pimblett still wants Justin Gaethje, and he is still angry about how the first fight played out.
After losing to Gaethje in their UFC 324 lightweight title fight, Pimblett said he wants the rematch and again pointed to the eye pokes that hung over the bout. He said he respects Gaethje, but he also called him a “dirty bastard” and made it clear he does not think the business between them is settled.
Pimblett said: “I’m gonna be fighting in like twelve weeks or something like that,” which lines up with the recent push toward UFC 329 in July. That return matters because his climb had been spotless before Gaethje got him. Pimblett entered UFC 324 on a 7-0 UFC run after building his name in Cage Warriors, where he won featherweight gold before moving to lightweight. At 31, with a 23-4 record and 10 submission wins, he still has time to rebuild, but now he has to show he can beat the same level of opponent that has ruled the top of the division for years. Pimblett has already shown how much noise he can make at lightweight.
“I’m gonna be back and someone’s getting muftied. I’m coming back for revenge after I lost my last fight. It’s one of them. Everyone loses and that’s how you learn. It’s how you get better. I probably learned more from losing that fight than winning seven other UFC fights, but I’ll be back better and stronger. And everyone’s gonna see.”
Gaethje has spent more than a decade proving he is one of the division’s nastiest tests. He was the only lightweight champion in World Series of Fighting before reaching the UFC, then turned himself into a former two-time interim lightweight champion and former BMF titleholder. His wins over Dustin Poirier, Michael Chandler, Tony Ferguson, and Rafael Fiziev show exactly why Pimblett is still talking about him. Gaethje does not just beat contenders. He drags them into miserable fights and forces them to answer hard questions.
Pimblett is chasing the biggest test of his career again
Pimblett’s rise was built differently. He became a star in Liverpool, carried that momentum into the UFC, and mixed charisma with a real submission threat instead of coasting on personality alone. UFC 324 was the first time he had to deal with an elite veteran who had already survived title fights, main events, and five-round wars. If he gets back to Gaethje, he will have earned it through the deepest division in the sport, not through hype.
“I’ve always said it’s in me destiny that I’m gonna be the world champion, and I will. At some point in your career you need a loss to realize stuff, and I think that was that point in my career. And hopefully I get the rematch with Gaethje, I got nothing but respect for him but he’s a dirty bastard poking me in the eyes. So I really hope we get that rematch some day.”
Pimblett also touched on the talk around Dana White and Eddie Hearn boxing each other, and his answer sounded exactly like a fighter laughing at promoter nonsense. He said:
“It’s not gonna happen,” then added, “Dana’s not gonna box, you know what I mean? I think it’s a bit of a mad situation. Eddie’s got the reach on him, but Dana’s my boss, lads. I’m backing Dana. Dana’s gonna spark him out. But at the same time, it’s not gonna gonna happen. We all agree it’s not never gonna happen.”
He followed that by saying:
“Thing is if they fought each other, they’d get paid well more than what the fighters get paid,” before adding, “30 mil each? No boxer is getting that under Eddie. No UFC fighter is getting that under Dana. That’s the funniest thing about it. And they both got nothing on any fighter that they’ve got. But, you know, that’s just the way the world works.”
The rematch becomes much easier to sell if Pimblett wins his next fight against another serious lightweight. Gaethje is still attached to the biggest fight chatter on the board, while the title picture keeps moving around the top lightweights. If Pimblett handles his next assignment, the UFC will not need much help making the second fight feel real.
