Paddy Pimblett Mocks Ilia Topuria After Round 4 TKO Loss to Justin Gaethje

Q: Can Paddy Pimblett back up his taunts after his own humbling loss to the new champion, Justin Gaethje?

Not yet. Paddy Pimblett can justify the talk only if he wins convincingly at UFC 329 and then earns another shot at Justin Gaethje. The facts cut both ways. Pimblett has a legitimate point that he lasted five rounds with Gaethje in January, losing a unanimous decision in a Fight of the Night performance, while Ilia Topuria was stopped by the doctor in the fourth round at UFC Freedom 250 after suffering severe facial damage. That gives Pimblett ammunition in his feud with Topuria, especially because Topuria had mocked Pimblett after UFC 324. But Pimblett is still coming off a clear loss to the same man he is now praising and calling out. Gaethje did not just edge him; he beat him over five rounds and then went on to take the undisputed title by handing Topuria his first defeat. That makes Pimblett’s social-media attack more personal than proven. Whether he can back it up depends on what comes next. Pimblett is ranked No. 7 and faces No. 6 Benoit Saint Denis on July 11 in Las Vegas. A strong win there would matter because it would show he learned from what he called his own mistake against Gaethje—choosing to strike too much instead of leaning on his grappling. A loss, or even a flat performance, would weaken any title argument. For now, Pimblett has backed up only the rivalry, not the championship claim. To make the taunts credible, he needs to beat Saint Denis and then show he is better prepared for Gaethje than he was in January.

3 articles · Updated · Yahoo Sports · Jun 15

Round 4 at UFC Freedom 250 ended with a doctor’s stoppage as Justin Gaethje battered Ilia Topuria, handing the former champion his first career loss and taking his lightweight belt.
Paddy Pimblett seized on the upset within hours, calling Topuria a quitter and a "pretender" in a social-media post that revived their long-running feud.
That rivalry dates to a March 2022 altercation in London and never reached the cage, even after Pimblett lost a five-round unanimous decision to Gaethje for the interim title at UFC 324 in January.
July 11 is Pimblett’s next hurdle: he faces Benoit Saint Denis in the UFC 329 co-main event in Las Vegas before any Gaethje rematch or Topuria showdown can materialize.