Paddy Pimblett vs. Justin Gaethje was seen by some as a high-octane, albeit sloppy fight, but a prolific MMA competitor referred to it as one of the lowest quality UFC headliners he has seen in a while. This statement was uttered by Josh Barnett, who has the distinction of being the youngest UFC heavyweight champion in history. The artist formerly known as ‘The Baby Faced Assassin’ has also had prolific efforts under banners like Pride, Strikeforce, and so much more.
With Gaethje becoming the first two-time interim UFC champion ever after besting Pimblett for 155-pound gold on the judges’ scorecards, ‘The Warmaster’ did not pull any punches on his personal X account, as Barnett said,
“Wow. That was one of the WORST UFC main events in a while. Two capable and dynamic finishers, fighting like like a couple of newbies. Such a terrible display, stretched over 5 awful rounds. This was match for the prelims. #UFC324”
Paddy Pimblett vs. Justin Gaethje also broken down by a prolific ex-UFC vet
UFC 324‘s Paddy Pimblett versus Justin Gaethje main event also did not impress another significant UFC alum who previously carved out quite a swath as a welterweight KO artist in his day. The combatant in question is Matt Brown, who responded to Barnett’s assessment of the UFC’s first main event under the promotion’s new media rights deal with Paramount. Within Barnett’s ever-growing thread on X, Matt Brown stated,
“Agreed. Neither ilia [Topuria] nor Arman [Tsarukyan] will have to break a sweat to beat either of those guys.”
Bouncing off of ‘The Immortal’ and his characterization of how the current lightweight champ and the number one contender in the weight category would do against both of the participants in the interim title clash at 155 pounds, Barnett responded,
“If either [Paddy] Pimblett or [Justin’ Gaethje fight like they did last night, I agree.”