Pimblett: Gaethje loss earned more respect than my win streak
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- Paddy Pimblett told CBS Sports he received more respect for his interim lightweight title loss to Justin Gaethje at UFC 324 in January than for the seven-fight win streak that preceded it, calling the fan reaction "crazy."
- Justin Gaethje stopped Ilia Topuria — whom Pimblett called the "pound-for-pound best" — on the White House South Lawn before the fifth round, retroactively validating Pimblett's loss in the eyes of fans who had called him a fraud.
- Pimblett absorbed 200 strikes (144 significant) from Gaethje but lasted to the final bell; Gaethje needed only 119 strikes (91 significant) to destroy Topuria's face and force a corner stoppage between rounds.
- Benoit Saint Denis, ranked No. 5 in the official UFC lightweight standings, meets Pimblett in the UFC 329 co-main event on Saturday.
- Pimblett rejected any "moral victory" framing, saying "I've lost at the end of the day," and dismissed Saint Denis's chances, noting he's never lost to a southpaw and has finished all three of his previous French opponents in the first two rounds.
Why it matters: Pimblett's UFC 329 return against a top-five ranked contender is his first fight since being used as Gaethje's springboard to the undisputed title — a second loss would erase the rehabilitated narrative and push his path back to a title shot further down the lightweight queue behind Saint Denis.
