Justin Gaethje in brutal put-down of specific Paddy Pimblett skills after UFC title win

Justin Gaethje has delved into his gameplan against Paddy Pimblett, two weeks after beating the Liverpudlian to win the UFC’s interim lightweight title.

Gaethje bruised and bloodied “Paddy The Baddy” in the main event of UFC 324, winning a comfortable decision to set up a unification fight with Ilia Topuria, who holds the regular lightweight belt.

And Gaethje has opened up on how he beat Pimblett in Las Vegas, discussing his tactics in a conversation with UFC legend Demetrious Johnson.

Speaking on Johnson’s YouTube channel on Sunday, Gaethje dismissed his fellow American’s claim that he didn’t grapple against Pimblett. “I did grapple!” said Gaethje, referring to his snapdowns on Pimblett’s neck. “How safe was it? It was so safe. I had to win, had to win!”

Still, Johnson asked why Gaethje held down Pimblett by the head, instead of putting hooks in (in other words: using his legs to wrap up or control his opponent), and Gaethje said: “Every time I put hooks in, I’m done. I get too high. Even wrestling my whole life, I never put the legs in. Got in trouble every time.

“I’ll never put hooks in, I get too high – consistently – and I give up position. I’m in such a good position, and I’m landing heavy shots, doing damage, and they’re like, ‘F*** this,’ and I’m winning, [and I lose that by using hooks].”

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Johnson, 39, also questioned why Pimblett didn’t make more of an effort to take down Gaethje, given it seemed the Scouser’s greatest chance of securing victory. Instead, Pimblett stood and kickboxed with Gaethje, who largely brutalised the 31-year-old.

“He couldn’t [shoot for a takedown],” said Gaethje, 37. “How do you shoot when you’re going like this [backwards] the whole time? You’re never gonna shoot.”

Gaethje proceeded to highlight an apparent weakness in Pimblett’s skillset, saying: “He was kicking me, though, but he kicked like a b***h, so I was like: ‘I can walk through that.’ Once I figured I could walk through it, then it was money.

“And he’s crafty as f***, so if I sit out here [at range] and fight him the whole time, which is a terrible way to fight him, he’s gonna be flashy [...] and he’s gonna win.”

Gaethje played down another area of Pimblett’s game, too, saying: “I was pushing him back the whole time, and he doesn’t have a shot like that [a double-leg takedown], he only has this one [a single-leg]. That’s his only entry.”

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Gaethje’s win over Pimblett made the American a two-time interim champion, after he first claimed that version of the belt in 2020. After stopping Tony Ferguson to collect the interim title, Gaethje was submitted by Khabib Nurmagomedov later that year while trying to unify the belts.

Gaethje also failed to win the undisputed title in 2022, when he was submitted by Charles Oliveira. Now, he is poised for a third – and surely final – crack at the official lightweight strap, as he anticipates a showdown with Topuria.

Topuria won the vacant title by knocking out Oliveira last June, stopping the Brazilian in the first round. The former featherweight king has since been absent from the Octagon, however, taking a break to deal with a “difficult moment” in his personal life.

But Topuria, 29, hinted last week that he has returned to full training, with a fight against Gaethje likely to be scheduled in the coming months. Some fans think the bout would be a perfect contest to take place at the White House, where the UFC is planning an unprecedented event for 14 June.