Ilia Topuria has sharply criticized Paddy Pimblett’s latest Octagon outing.
Topuria and Pimblett have been locked in a bitter feud since 2022, with early verbal jabs spiraling into a heated rivalry marked by a physical altercation and persistent back-and-forth across interviews and social media.
When “El Matador” captured the lightweight title with a first-round knockout of Charles Oliveira at UFC 317, he and Pimblett came face-to-face in the Octagon, hinting at a potential showdown. The Englishman came closest to that opportunity during Topuria’s brief hiatus due to personal issues, when the promotion introduced an interim title at UFC 324 in January and matched him against Justin Gaethje.
However, Gaethje emerged as the ultimate disruptor for “The Baddy”, delivering a dominant unanimous decision victory to secure the interim belt and eventually earning a unification bout against Topuria.
Now, Ilia Topuria is set to take on Gaethje in the main event of UFC Freedom 250 on June 14, slated to take place on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C.
Ilia Topuria Suggests Paddy Pimblett Is Not Ready for Elite Level
During a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Ilia Topuria suggested a potential clash with Paddy Pimblett would have been the more compelling matchup given their history, especially compared to Justin Gaethje.
Meanwhile, the reigning UFC lightweight champion was far from impressed with “The Baddy’s” performance at UFC 324, conceding it failed to meet the level he had anticipated.
“I was a little surprised at how bad Paddy really is,” Ilia Topuria said. “I was expecting him to win, to be honest. I was expecting him to take Justin down, to do a different fight. What he did inside the Octagon in that fight, it surprised me a little bit. He really proved that he’s a little sausage.”
“El Matador” added that while Pimblett is capable of bouncing back from the loss, he questioned whether the Scouser possesses the skill level needed to compete with the division’s elite.
“Rebound from a loss? Of course, but how is he going to gain the skills and techniques needed in the sport? That’s basically impossible. He needs to die and be born again… Now he’s too far [in the rankings], we don’t see him in the horizon anymore. Bye Paddy. I didn’t even have to step inside the octagon to beat him, so that feels even a little bit better.”