You’ve probably noticed that the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight division still doesn’t have its next title fight booked — but four names are circling the opportunity.
There’s Paddy Pimblett, Justin Gaethje, and the winner of this weekend’s Arman Tsarukyan vs. Dan Hooker clash at UFC Qatar (Sat., Nov. 22, 2025). And while the rumor mill suggests Pimblett could be next for reigning champion Ilia Topuria sometime in 2026, nothing is official. Topuria has openly welcomed that matchup, but at this point, it’s still just talk.
Now Pimblett, who is in Qatar to corner two teammates making their promotional debuts, has weighed in on Gaethje’s stance.
“I don’t ever want to say a bad word about Justin Gaethje because he’s a legend, but he’s doing interviews lately being a proper b-tch — saying the UFC owe him, and he deserves it and all that,” Pimblett told reporter Jamal Niaz. “No one’s owed nothing. You fight for it.”
Pimblett didn’t stop there.
“My last win, I beat someone in a better fashion, who was a higher-ranked opponent than he won in his last fight. I know he’s a legend and he’s done a lot for the company, but you can’t just demand a title shot. Then you got Arman, who hasn’t fought in 18 months.”
Regardless of how the Lightweight shuffle ends, UFC has tough decisions ahead. Topuria vs. Pimblett is a massive grudge match that could sell at any time, while Topuria vs. Gaethje is guaranteed chaos and is more of a legacy-type fight for Topuria’s resume.
Still, Pimblett believes the choice should be obvious.
“Me and Topuria have got the storyline built in. It’s all there,” Pimblett said. “It’s better for me that he won the belt. If Charles Oliveira won, I probably would’ve had to fight someone else first. With Ilia, the storyline is already set. I don’t understand why it’s not already made and written in a contract, but we’ll see what happens over the next few weeks.”