Paddy Pimblett rejects fake beef in the UFC

Paddy Pimblett says he has no interest in creating fake rivalries.

Paddy Pimblett has always generated excitement during his rise in the UFC, but in an interview, he stated that he never wants to force a beef and doesn’t want to make up insults just to get attention. The lightweight also spoke about the feud between Sean Strickland and Khamzat Chimaev. He says he’s not a fan of starting feuds just to hype up a fight.

“Sean Strickland I think he’s hilarious. But him and the Khamzat thing. I think they said after they were just saying it to build the fight up. I’m not really into that. I’m not going to start saying stuff about someone if it’s just fake. I just can’t do that”

Paddy Pimblett said in a conversation with Travis Kelce on Green Light.

And he actually has every right to make such statements. While he has enjoyed getting into verbal spats with his opponents and making headlines with confrontations at press conferences, he never made the problem up. If he doesn’t have one, he doesn’t want to make one up either.

The discussion started because they were talking about the promotional phase leading up to the fight between Sean Strickland and Khamzat Chimaev. For months, it was a personal back-and-forth involving family, religion, and background. After the fight, however, the tension subsided. Sean Strickland won by split decision, and afterward, the two even hugged in the Octagon. Sean Strickland himself admitted that the controversy surrounding the fight significantly helped to market it better. He also says that the hostility was real at the time, but that both of them said things that went too far. This supports Paddy Pimblett’s point to some extent. He didn’t claim that every argument between the two was fake; his point was simply that it’s a tactic he doesn’t want to resort to.

Paddy Pimblett has had his share of feuds, of course. For example, with Ilia Topuria. But this one has been going on for years across social media and in person, so it’s not something staged or anything like that. Feuds are part of the game, and it’s actually good that they exist, otherwise things might get boring. However, maybe you don’t need to bring up personal matters like family or religion just to promote the fight.

Personally, I totally agree with Paddy Pimblett on this point. But in general, I feel like harsh trash talk, like the kind directed at family or religion, is becoming less and less tolerated, and that’s a good thing. Keep the debate lively and feel free to argue, but don’t take it too far.