Getty Paddy Pimblett
One of England’s biggest mixed martial arts stars, Paddy Pimblett, made his UFC pay-per-view debut on December 10, and he left the arena with a controversial decision victory.
“The Baddy” took on Jared Gordon during the UFC 282 co-main event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The two battled for three rounds and after the dust settled, Bruce Buffer announced Pimblett took the win by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
However, many watching the fight had scored it for Flash, pointing to Gordon landing more significant strikes throughout the contest and him controlling Pimblett against the cage for most of the third frame.
With the win, Pimblett continues to increase his star power. He’s 4-0 as a UFC athlete and he improved his professional mixed martial arts record to 20-3. For Gordon, he was unable to build on the momentum of his August win over Leonardo Santos and his record fell to 19-6.
Nate Diaz, Francis Ngannou & Others React to Pimblett’s Win Over Gordon
Here are some of the top reactions from the MMA community via Twitter:
UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou tweeted: “UD ? (thinking-face emoji).
UD ? 🤔
“He fighting a 145lber,” longtime MMA veteran Nate Diaz tweeted, seemingly talking about Pimblett.
“Bruh?” Diaz continued. “You lost that fight.”
MMA bettor Luca Fury tweeted: “Paddy Pimblett’s villain origin story began this week. Took an L versus Ariel (Helwani), clearly took an L vs Gordon, got a robbery win, claimed he dominated, whiffed on every single joke in his post-fight interview. Yikes! #UFC282.”
Former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman tweeted: “Ummmmm.”
Ummmmm
“The MMA Hour” host Ariel Helwani tweeted: “What did y’all think of that decision? Thought it was 29-28 at worst for Jared Gordon. Thought he won the first and third. Could make a case for second, too. Pretty incredible not a single judge had it for him? How’s that possible?”
“Not even messing around now: Was that one of the worst decisions ever? I think you can make a case. I’m blown away that not a single judge had it for Gordon,” Helwani continued.
“HUGE L for our judges on that 1,” ex-UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz wrote.
“Man, guys that’s the worst decision,” former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo said in a video posted to Twitter. “That’s like smelling a donkey’s a**. I mean, I thought Sean O’Malley had the worst decision of the year. Jesus, move out of the way Sean O’Malley, that was even worse than what you had. [It] absolutely makes me sick.”
More Reactions Were Shared After the UFC 282 Co-Main Event Concluded
“Jared Gordon landed almost no strikes in that third round,” CBS Sports’ Shakiel Mahjouri tweeted. “Pimblett landed elbows and knees, so I give him the third. 10-9 Pimblett and 29-28 overall for Pimblett (though Round 2 was a toss up).”
UFC bantamweight king Aljamain Sterling tweeted: “I felt Gordon won but TBF here, the UFC doesn’t control the judging. The state commission picks and controls the judges in place.”
ESPN’s Brett Okamoto tweeted: “This sport, without question, throws the word “robbery” around wayyyyyyy too much. But sometimes, it actually does apply.”