“Scouser can’t be knocked out”. Conor’s heir continues to shake up the UFC

The fight between Paddy Pimblett and Rodrigo Vargas was short-lived but an enchanting and memorable one. Pimblett was not only able to withstand the hail of punches that Vargas unleashed on him, but also delivered a spectacular choke hold that earned the Brit an early victory.

The main fight of UFC London, which took place on the night of March 19th to 20th was between Alexander Volkov and the Englishman Tom Aspinall. The Liverpool-born former Cage Warriors champion Pimblett and Mexican Vargas fought in the main event.

The Brit has a win-loss ratio of 17 to 3 fights. He had one fight under the UFC auspices. His opponent was Luigi Vendramini. For Englishman it was very tough fight, which he nearly lost, but still he managed to knock out his opponent at the end of the first round.

Pimblett is known not only for his sport victories, but also for his rather odious escapades. He made some very unpleasant remarks about Khabib Nurmagomedov, as well as insulted the Georgian people. The latter did not go unnoticed by Elia Topuria. It even came to a scuffle between Pimblett and the Georgian fighter.

Topuria challenged Pimblett after his impressive win over Jay Herbert. His post-fight remarks were full of profanity towards the Englishman and included a promise to ‘kick the arse’ of the brat.

Vargas’ record is less impressive: 12 wins against 4 losses. The Mexican has had three fights under the UFC umbrella, of which he has won only 1. However, in one of his lost fights he was called a technical defeat due to disqualification due to a rule violation. Styles of Vargas and Pimblett are totally different: if Vargas’s strong point is his striking technique (7 wins out of 12 by TKO), Pimblett is much stronger in close fight and application of wrestling technique.

From the first seconds of the fight Vargas had a significant advantage. Pimblett could not put anything against him and during the first seconds he was on the canvas. Throughout the first round there was a feeling that the Mexican, who had so cleverly knocked out his opponent, was about to finish him and take an early victory. But Paddy stubbornly tried to impose his fighting technique on Rodrigo and tie his opponent up in a clinch. However, Vargas stubbornly refused to allow this to happen.

When Pimblett did manage to get to his feet, he went into a clinch with his opponent, which allowed him to execute a front trip and a very successful choke hold from the back. As a result, the Mexican surrendered. Pimblett was jubilant after the victory, telling the audience that “you can’t knock out a scouser”.

The British man’s victory has made the UFC’s line-up even more interesting. No word yet on who his next opponent will be, but if Dana White does set up a fight between Pimblett and Elijah Topuria, it will be an interesting and groundbreaking bout. The Georgian, for whom it is a matter of honour to teach his nation’s offender a lesson, will certainly not stand squarely on the Briton’s shoulders. As for Pimblett, if he has started to imitate Conor McGregor, who also loved to beat up his rivals, he will have to learn the other side of the coin, so to speak.