‘I’m not getting paid my worth’: UFC star Paddy Pimblett rejects calls to fight more often

Some fans were shocked to learn how little the Liverpudlian made despite his starring role at UFC London

Paddy Pimblett has insisted that he will not fight more often until he is paid more to compete.

The Liverpudlian was the star of UFC London in March, despite fighting before the main event and co-main event on a hugely successful night for British talent.

Pimblett, 27, submitted Rodrigo Vargas in the first round at the O2 Arena to make it two stoppage wins from two appearances in the UFC, with his debut in the promotion having taken place last September.

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The UFC is returning to the O2 Arena on 23 July, with most fans expecting that Pimblett will feature on the card. Although the lightweight has not dismissed the suggestion, he has said that he is not looking to fight especially frequently until his pay improves.

“I make more money outside the Octagon,” Pimblett said on Food Truck Diaries. “It makes me laugh when people are commenting on my stuff and things, saying: ‘He’s not active enough. He doesn’t fight enough. He should be fighting four times a year.’

“Why? Why should I fight four times a year? Give me a reason, when I’m earning more outside the cage than I am in it.

“You want to fight to keep things going, but as I’ve said, I just genuinely like fighting – don’t know what it is. If no one else got paid and everyone was doing it for free, then I’d fight for free. But everyone else is getting paid, and some of them are getting paid their worth.

Pimblett is 2-0 in the UFC with two stoppage victories (Kieran Cleeves/PA) (PA Wire)

“I’m not getting paid my worth, so there’s no point in rushing back into the cage when I can eat burgers like this and sit and chill!”

Pimblett revealed after March’s edition of UFC London that his current contract sees him earn £9,000 to fight and another £9,000 to win. His victory in London also earned him a £37,000 bonus, with UFC president Dana White deciding to hand a bonus to every winner that night – an unprecedented circumstance.

Pimblett has also rejected calls for him to take on elite-level lightweights, with the Liverpudlian yet to even enter the rankings at 155lbs.

“I’ve had people tweeting me in the past few weeks, saying: ‘We want to see him face [Islam] Makhachev, we want to see him face [Tony] Ferguson, we want to see him face [Justin] Gaethje,’” Pimblett said.

“I’m like: ‘What?!’ I won’t be fighting them for about three years, and then that’s if they’re still at the top of the game by then. There’s no point.

“The fans don’t always see, do they? They’re just: ‘I want to see this, I want to see that.’ You can understand it. You want to see fights, don’t you, as a fight fan?”