This collage of photos shows English MMA fighter Paddy Pimblett (left) and Islam Makhachev. — X/Reuters
Paddy Pimblett has called Islam Makhachev ‘one of the best’ in the sport after UFC 322 victory over Jack Della Maddalena.
The Dagestani fighter vacated his lightweight title earlier this year to move up and chase gold at welterweight as well.
Makhachev successfully defeated Della Maddalena by unanimous decision, 50-45, 50-45, 50-45, to become a two-division champion, on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York.
The dominant performance of Islam was praised by many, including lightweight contender Paddy Pimblett, who gave his opinion on the bout on his YouTube channel.
The Liverpool fighter lauded Makhachev as one of the best.
“Pound for pound No. 1, lad. Unbelievable performance,” Pimblett said. “I think he goes down as one of the best ever.”
Paddy then talked about Ilia Topuria’s callout, saying there are several others in line for Islam, and the Spanish fighter might not get his chance in the near future.
“He mentioned the White House, but I think he’ll defend his belt before the White House. The White House isn’t until July, is it? Let’s see what happens. You never know,” Paddy added.
“Ilia’s been saying he wants to go up and fight him, but you’ve got other contenders there now. [Michael] Morales, [Carlos] Prates, you’ve then got Ian Garry if he beats Belal [Muhammad] next week. Shavkat [Rakhmonov] as well, who needs to come back. He’s been the No. 1 contender for about a year. They’re all exciting matchups for Islam.”
The English fighter then explained how Islam Makhachev’s win could affect the lightweight division.
“The welterweight division, at the moment, could be becoming more exciting than the lightweight division. I don’t think any division has been more exciting than lightweight in over 10 years. Good times for the sport,” he explained.