Paddy Pimblett hasn’t changed his stance on a prospective fight with Conor McGregor.
Pimblett faces Michael Chandler in the co-main event of UFC 314 this weekend, in a fight he has described himself as the biggest of his career.
His opponent, Chandler, is one of the best lightweights in the world, having stood toe-to-toe with Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje, and Charles Oliveira since his UFC arrival.
Before his most recent bout against Oliveira in November, Chandler had been preparing to meet a returning Conor McGregor in the Octagon.
The pair went head-to-head on season 31 of The Ultimate Fighter in 2023, which normally concludes with the head coaches having it out with one and other in a fight.
However, McGregor withdrew from the bout after injuring his toe while training, and still hasn’t competed since breaking his leg in a trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier in 2021.
McGregor’s UFC return has never seemed further away, but the Irishman reignited speculation on Thursday when he revealed his interest in Pimblett’s bout with Chandler.
“I’ve seen it, obviously. I got sent it by a good few people,” Pimblett responded when asked about McGregor’s remarks at the UFC 314 pre-fight press conference on Thursday night.
McGregor had uploaded a video to social media of himself smashing pads with his coach and captioned it with a message for Chandler and Pimblett.
“I am interested in the Chandler/Pimblett fight this weekend,” he wrote.
Pimblett added: “I’d welcome that fight, that’s where the money is at.
“But I can’t look past Michael. I’ve got to fight Michael on Saturday night and get the win here. That’s all that matters.”
Chandler, who has gone back and forth with McGregor for years now, unsurprisingly had a bit more to say about his long-term rival.
“I’m sure he’s watching,” Chandler chimed in. “He watches and he’s very interested in coming back, but can he put together a training camp?
“That’s the real question. We don’t know. All I know is you can see by my actions – fighting Charles Oliveira in November and now fighting five months later Paddy Pimblett – putting my ranking on the line, going out to brave the unknown. I’m going to stay active.
“The first 26 months in this organisation – I weighed in six times, fought five times, Fight of the Night, Fight of the Year, Debut of the Year, Knockout of the Year – all I do is put on great fights.
“I do it for you guys, and on Saturday night I’m going to do it again. I don’t really care what Conor tweets.
“If he comes back, we’ve got to finish The Ultimate Fighter 31, and he’s going to be impressed by my performance on Saturday night.”
UFC 314 – Main Card
Legacies on the line
Main event: Alexander Volkanovski (1) vs Diego Lopes (3) – featherweight title bout
Co-main event: Michael Chandler (7) vs Paddy Pimblett (12) – lightweight
Yair Rodriguez (5) vs Patricio Pitbull (debut) – featherweight
Bryce Mitchell (13) vs Jean Silva (unranked) – featherweight
Nikita Krylov (8) vs Dominick Reyes (11) – light heavyweight
Pimblett has already revealed several times that he would be more than happy to fight McGregor under any circumstances.
Chandler, meanwhile, is on the same boat as Pimblett when it comes to fighting McGregor, as he has previously asserted that the Irishman should keep his ‘word’ and accept a fight with him.
McGregor’s slight call-out of both men has no doubt drawn even more eyes towards Pimblett’s fight with Chandler, which takes place in the early hours of Sunday morning for UK fans live from the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Regardless of who wins, don’t be surprised if either man picks up the microphone after their victory to send a message back in the direction of McGregor’s way.
Back in January, The Inbetweeners star-turned-talkSPORT MMA pundit Blake Harrison claimed Pimblett is the only UFC lightweight McGregor ‘could’ beat on his MMA return.
Pimblett spoke on the potential fight one month later, saying it sounded ‘very tasty.
“A lot of people have said this to me already: ‘Beat Chandler, take the McGregor fight,” he added.
“Obviously, it would be the biggest fight in the sport, the biggest fight we’ve ever seen.”
Pimblett would have no doubts on his ability to defeat McGregor on the latter’s return, but with a lightweight title potentially up for grabs he may favour that path first.
Islam Makhachev is the current champion at 155 pounds, while Arman Tsarukyan, Oliveira, Gaethje and Poirier are all in the top five.
