Paddy Pimblett Makes Bold Prediction for Charles Oliveira Fight

UFC lightweight star Paddy Pimblett made a bold prediction for a potential matchup against UFC BMF champion Charles Oliveira.

Pimblett earned his most impressive victory to date when he submitted Benoit Saint Denis via first-round D’Arce choke in the co-main event of UFC 329. It was a violent finish by Pimblett, as he choked his opponent unconscious after snatching up his neck.

Riding high after beating Saint Denis, Pimblett now wants to take on even greater challenges in his UFC career, including potentially fighting Oliveira, the sport’s all-time submission master.

Paddy Pimblett Says He Would Submit Charles Oliveira

Speaking to the media in the UFC 329 post-fight press conference, Pimblett said that he would not only beat Oliveira, but that he would finish him by submission.

“I’d submit Charles. I’ve got nothing but respect for Charles, know what I mean? He’s an absolute legend in this sport. But he’s on his way out. And I think if he tries to grapple with me, I’d submit him. But we’d probably end up having a war for five rounds on the feet if I ever fight with Charles Oliveira,” Pimblett said.

While Oliveira does have 22 wins by submission in his MMA career, he has been submitted four times, including submission defeats to Jim Miller, Ricardo Lamas, Anthony Pettis, and Islam Makhachev. So while he is incredibly dangerous when he’s the one who is attacking with submissions, Oliveira does not have the best submission defense in the world, and Pimblett believes he could take advantage of that being the case.

Will the UFC Book Paddy Pimblett vs. Charles Oliveira?

Pimblett has made it clear that he is interested in fighting Oliveira next, so the question is, would the UFC matchmakers book this fight?

It’s certainly possible, as both Pimblett and Oliveira don’t have their next opponents lined up yet. It also makes sense based on the rankings, as both men are in the top five at 155 lbs.

The fact that the BMF title could also be on the line makes the bout even more intriguing, especially after Oliveira’s last fight against Max Holloway, where he won the BMF belt over Max Holloway at UFC 324.

That was not the fight that anyone expected, as Oliveira essentially laid on top of Holloway for five rounds as he played it safe and won the BMF title. But against Pimblett, Oliveira won’t have the same opportunity to just lay and pray, since Pimblett has one of the best ground games in the division and could potentially counter Oliveira on the mat.

We will see what the UFC does next, but either way, Pimblett has put himself in a terrific position to have a huge fight in his next bout as he looks to get back into the title mix at 155 lbs and potentially fight UFC lightweight champion Justin Gaethje in a rematch after Pimblett lost a decision to Gaethje at UFC 324. But there is no doubt a matchup between Pimblett and Oliveira would be a lot of fun.

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