UFC bantamweight champion [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag] doesn’t have much to gain by beating [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag].
Pimblett (20-3 MMA, 4-0 UFC) meets the skidding Ferguson (25-9 MMA, 15-7 UFC) on Dec. 16 at UFC 296 in Las Vegas.
Pimblett and Ferguson are on completely different career trajectories. “El Cucuy” has lost his past six fights in a row, whereas Pimblett is unbeaten in the octagon after most recently edging out Jared Gordon at UFC 282 last December.
“Initial reaction, I’m like, ‘Goddamn, that’s a lose-lose for Paddy,'” O’Malley said on his YouTube channel. “You go out there and beat Tony, who’s really good but on a six-fight losing streak. So if you beat him, you’re not going to get credit for beating Tony Ferguson. You’re not going to get credit for beating a guy you should beat him, but it’s a dangerous fight. It’s not that easy of a fight. It’s going to be a tough fight. Tony could 100 hundred percent win this fight. Now you’re coming off a loss to a guy – I mean, at least it’s still T-Ferg, but it’s like, is it T-Ferg? I don’t know.”
According to DraftKings, Pimblett is a -380 favorite, meaning a $380 bet would be needed on “The Baddy” to return $100 profit. Ferguson is a +300 underdog, meaning a $100 bet on the former interim champion would win $300.
It’s a fight that UFC CEO Dana White has sold as being competitive while also acknowledging that Ferguson, 39, should probably retire if he loses a seventh in a row.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 296.