Paddy Pimblett rejuvenated his rivalry with MMA journalist Ariel Helwani.
There was once a time when Pimblett would do interviews with Helwani on The MMA Hour. Everything changed when the latter accused ‘The Baddy’ of asking for money to do an interview. The UFC lightweight claimed he had another paid interview planned, and the famous journalist wanted him to cancel to be on his show for free.
Helwani addressed the situation by revealing several text messages and voicemails from Pimblett. During a recent interview with Sean Sheehan, ‘The Baddy’ revisited the rivalry by saying:
“People turned on me for telling the truth about Ariel. It’s crazy… I’ve got all that [evidence] on me phone. This receipts thing is the maddest shout ever. The voice notes is the funniest because I said about coming to see him. I don’t say on that voice note ‘I will come on The MMA Hour.’ I say, ‘what are you doing? Want to meet up?’ ‘Cause at the time, I actually thought of Ariel as a friend, but obviously, I was never a friend to him. He just saw me as a pound sign.”
Paddy Pimblett says he shouldn’t have called Ariel Helwani names, won’t bury the hatchet
Throughout the online altercation, Paddy Pimblett insulted Ariel Helwani by calling him names, which he now regrets. Pimblett blames his wrongdoing on the fact that he was cutting weight for his fight against Jared Gordon. ‘The Baddy’ had this to say during the same interview:
“I’ve said this the other day, I shouldn’t have called him names. I shouldn’t of, but anyone who was in my position there would understand it. That was fight week, I was water loading… Any fighter will understand you do get a bit assy. You can’t help it, you bite at people. So, when Ariel’s name got brought up, I shouldn’t have said nasty words.”
Pimblett was asked if he would resolve the issue with Helwani and responded by saying:
“No, lad. He tried to assassinate me character. He’s tried to ruin my career.”
Pimblett last fought in December 2022, extending his UFC record to 4-0 with a controversial decision win against Jared Gordon. ‘The Baddy’ suffered a severe ankle injury, which has left him sidelined after surgery. The Liverpool native recently revealed that he might not fight until next year due to the extended recovery process.
Paddy Pimblett talks Ariel Helwani. @SeanSheehanBA @SevereMMA
Full interview here:https://t.co/BRMG06GTWg pic.twitter.com/saklXmCsFP— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) April 24, 2023
