Gaethje: Topuria Beats Pimblett 97 Times Out of 100

Gaethje: Pimblett Has Almost No Chance Against Topuria

Justin Gaethje doesn't give Paddy Pimblett much of a chance if he fought Ilia Topuria.

Gaethje (28-5 MMA, 11-5 UFC) defeated Pimblett by unanimous decision to claim the interim lightweight title at UFC 324. He then successfully unified the belt when he battered Topuria en route to a Round 4 doctor's stoppage TKO at UFC Freedom 250.

Pimblett (23-4 MMA, 7-1 UFC) and Topuria (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) have been on a collision course for years, but if they were to finally meet, who would win?

"Ilia is one of the best in the world," Gaethje told UFC on Paramount+. "He is one of the most dangerous fighters that there is and he's a lot more dangerous than Paddy Pimblett. However, Paddy Pimblett is goofy. He's got a funky style – not goofy in a bad way. Being goofy is such an asset. He's really hard to hit. He's really long. He moves in weird angles and at different times.

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"That throws you off, and that's why he has success. That's why guys like Sean Strickland have success and Dricus Du Plessis have success – because their timing is just different and funky, and having a funky style is hard to figure out. I think Ilia is way more dangerous. I think fighting is crazy. In my mind, I think 97 out of 100 times, Ilia beats him up."

Pimblett will look to rebound from the Gaethje loss when he takes on Benoit Saint Denis (17-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) in Saturday's UFC 329 co-main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Paramount+).