Even though Paddy Pimblett has only been in the Ultimate Fighting Championship for a one-fight cup of coffee, he has made his presence known. And based on some recent comments, Sean O’Malley is well aware of him too.
Pimblett (17-3) has quickly become a UFC sensation over the last week. He was much ballyhooed entering his promotional debut at UFC Vegas 36, following a successful and trash-talking-filled run competing for Cage Warriors. He then elevated his status over the weekend after a wild knockout win over Luigi Vendramini on ESPN+ inside the UFC APEX.
In a short time, his fame has exploded, and his words hold an all-new weight, even a week after they were spoken. Before his bout with Vendramini, Pimblett spoke to “>MMA on Point and had a few sharp critiques when asked about unranked bantamweight star Sean O’Malley.
Paddy Pimblett calls Sean O’Malley ‘a b*tch ass’
He’s a bit of a bitch ass. Hurts his ankle and blames his loss on that. He’s a little pothead. O’Malley’s stoned half the time. He’s got good strikes, he’s got good stand up, but as soon as he gets in there with a decent grappler he’s gonna get beat,” Pimblett said. “I like people who interact with the fans, without fans we wouldn’t be where we are now. The fact that he does makes me like him.
The comments made the rounds and got back to the popular 135-pound talent, and O’Malley seemed a bit perplexed that so many fighters and fans assume he can’t grapple when he has barely shown any of his ground skills during his tenure competing in the Octagon.
Sean O’Malley confused by opinions on his grappling
Yeah, I didn’t know he was talking sh*t about me. That’s not very nice, O’Malley ” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>said on his podcast. “He said I had bad grappling. I wonder why people just assume I have bad grappling. In the UFC, I grappled a little against Andre Soukhamthath. I swept him with a guillotine, put him in a triangle, looked for an armbar. My grappling didn’t look bad in that fight. that’s literally the only fight I ever grappled [in the UFC]. So it’s just weird that some people just assume that because I’m a good striker I must be a bad grappler.
Although Sean O’Malley vs Paddy Pimblett would be a fight that fans would salivate over, it’s unlikely to happen since the Liverpool native competes at lightweight, and the American is a tall but very slim 135-pound fighter. However, Pimblett was a Cage Warriors champion at featherweight, so the dream of some fans isn’t completely impossible.
O’Malley (14-1) is still looking for his next booking following his dominant UFC 264 victory over short-notice replacement Kris Moutinho. The native of Montana was recently offered a bout against Octagon legend and former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar for UFC 268 in New York City, however, O’Malley turned down the bout due to the state and city’s costly taxes.
