Paddy Pimblett thinks he should have earned a draw against Justin Gaethje due to unpunished fouls, specifically eye pokes.
The popular Liverpudlian took his first UFC loss last month at UFC 324 when he was outpointed by ‘The Highlight’. While all three judges sided with the American, two had it a wide margin at 49-46.
But Pimblett argued that the fight was closer than those scores suggested. He pointed out several eye pokes from Gaethje that went unpenalised, saying a point deduction for those fouls would have turned one judge’s 48-47 card into a draw in his eyes.
Paddy Pimblett feels Justin Gaethje fight should have been a draw
‘The Baddy’ believes the scorecard that gave him rounds three and five against Justin Gaethje was the correct one. He came to this conclusion after watching the bout back on a big screen at home, having only seen it on his phone initially.
On Sunday, Pimblett posted a YouTube video sharing his reaction to the fight, stating: “If he got a point took off like he should have, that’s a draw… I don’t want to sound bitter, you can’t cry over spilt milk.”
He even made a joke that he now understands how Jared Gordon must have felt after their controversial December 2022 fight, which many observers believe Gordon should have won. Although Pimblett initially maintained that the scorecards were accurate, his position on the fight has become less rigid over time.
“I knew the scorecards weren’t going to be in our favour, that’s why I did the little ‘I don’t know’ [gesture] to my mum. I half knew I’d lost but you can see my eyes, bright red there. I heard 49-46 and I knew, they all should have been 48-47,” the 31-year-old explained.
Paddy Pimblett expresses admiration for Justin Gaethje and his team
Even with his issues over the scorecards, Pimblett took time to acknowledge Gaethje’s performance and show respect to his family and team. After the fight, the former BMF titleholder was joined in the Octagon by his family, manager Ali Abdelaziz, and ex-welterweight champion Kamaru Usman.
‘The Baddy’ said: “Usman came over and spoke to me to tell me what I’d been doing to stay in the fight and all that. Ali came over and spoke to me, everyone he was with were dead nice and good sports.
“I think Usman was saying to me that I’ll come back better from this and all that, and I know for a fact I will. Someone like Usman saying that when you’ve just fought a legend like Justin Gaethje and Usman’s a legend in his own right? He’s one of the greatest welterweights of all time.
“So having him say something like that to you, you know you’re on the right path. I know I’m going to be a world champion anyway, it’s just going to be a little bit later than expected.”
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