UFC free fight: Did Paddy Pimblett get away with a robbery against Jared Gordon?

Watch the full UFC 282 battle between Paddy Pimblett and Jared Gordon that sparked controversy.

One of the most controversial fights in recent memory featured one of the sport’s rising stars.

[autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag] stepped into the biggest spotlight of his career at UFC 282 in December 2022, and exited it with a very controversial victory over [autotag]Jared Gordon[/autotag].

Many viewers thought Gordon definitively did enough to hand Pimblett his first UFC loss. However, the three opinions that mattered were the judge scoring the fight: Douglas Crosby, Chris Lee, and Ron McCarthy. They scored the fight unanimously 29-28 for Pimblett.

Now that the dust has settled and emotions aren’t as high, did Pimblett get away with a robbery decision? Or were the judges right after all?

Check out the full fight video above before Pimblett returns Saturday vs. Tony Ferguson at UFC 296.

Paddy Pimblett unlikely to fight at UFC 286 in London after revealing he needs ankle surgery

Paddy Pimblett will undergo ankle surgery in March, making it unlikely he will fight on home soil at UFC 286.

[autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag] will undergo surgery in March.

Pimblett (20-3 MMA, 4-0 UFC), who’s coming off a controversial decision win over Jared Gordon this past December at UFC 282, says he hurt his right ankle on the first kick he threw in the fight.

With the promotion returning to London on March 18 for UFC 286, many people believed it’d be the perfect time for the British star to return. But it appears that won’t happen after revealing in a YouTube video that he will go under the knife for his ankle injury in the same timeframe.

“Looks like you have got a small amount of cartilage lost in this bit, and that’s exactly where you’re sore,” Pimblett’s doctor said after examining him. “The other thing you’ve got is all this white stuff around here. That’s all fluid, so that’s what all the swelling is. Now when we look at your ligaments that joins from your fibula, you probably got what we call a Grade 2 injury to that.”

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Prior to beating Gordon, Pimblett competed on back-to-back UFC London shows in 2022, where he submitted Rodrigo Vargas and Jordan Leavitt. He earned Performance of the Night bonuses for both finishes.

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MMA Junkie’s 2022 Robbery of the Year: Paddy Pimblett def. Jared Gordon

There were a few questionable calls in 2022, but none stirred up more controversy than Paddy Pimblett’s win over Jared Gordon.

There were a few questionable calls in 2022, but none stirred up more controversy than [autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag]’s win over [autotag]Jared Gordon[/autotag], making it MMA Junkie’s Robbery of the Year.

Pimblett (20-3 MMA, 4-0 UFC) faced Gordon in the UFC 282 co-main event – a big spot for Pimblett, who emerged as one of the biggest stars on the roster after just three fights. Although Pimblett impressed with three finishes and three bonuses, the one knock on his resume was his level of competition.

Enter Gordon (19-6 MMA, 7-5 UFC), who many widely considered as his toughest test to date – and he absolutely proved to be. Although Gordon lost by unanimous decision, it was a scorecard that was heavily debated by Gordon himself, fellow fighters, media members, and fans.

Round 1 was back and forth, with both men landing their shots. However, it appeared that Gordon landed the more significant strikes, continuously finding a home for his left hook. He even wound up in top position to close out the round after a scramble.

Round 2 was the toughest to score, with some awarding it to Gordon and some to Pimblett. But it was the only round all three judges agreed on, and they all gave it to Pimblett. He went for a more kick-heavy approach, and it worked. He continued to press forward and wasn’t eating those left hooks like he was in Round 1. It was still a close back-and-forth round in which Pimblett momentarily threatened with a choke to counter Gordon’s takedown. He also closed out the round with a flurry, which edged him the round.

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Pimblett’s call for Fight of the Night was ridiculed, but up to that point it was an entertaining fight. However, Round 3 is where the pace completely slowed down, and that was thanks to Gordon’s approach, which was criticized by UFC president Dana White. Criticized or not, it was Gordon who had Pimblett controlled and pressed against the cage for the majority of the round. Yes, pretty much nothing happened, but Gordon working for the takedown is octagon control – even if he didn’t have success keeping Pimblett down.

Pimblett did try and fend him off with strikes, but in a round where practically nothing happened, it was hard to score for Pimblett. Two judges gave Round 3 to Gordon, but it was Round 1 that was the determining factor for Pimblett. The confusing part was perhaps how none of the judges scored the fight for Gordon overall.

The fact remains that Pimblett fought hard, and he shouldn’t be getting heat for the judges’ decision. But after saying post-fight that he won Rounds 1 and 2 and coasted in the third, that’s what rubbed fans the wrong way. Regardless of the outcome, it was a close fight. But Gordon had the more impactful moments and overall control, which should have been enough to award him the fight – but judges thought otherwise.

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Bryce Mitchell says financial woes forced him to fight through flu in UFC 282 loss to Ilia Topuria

Bryce Mitchell explains why he wasn’t in a good position to withdraw from his UFC 282 fight with Ilia Topuria even though he should’ve.

Despite having the flu, [autotag]Bryce Mitchell[/autotag] says he had no choice but to compete at UFC 282.

Mitchell (15-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) was scheduled to face Movsar Evloev in the UFC Fight Night 214 headliner on Nov. 5, but an injury forced Evloev. Mitchell was offered Ilia Topuria a month later and accepted the bout.

Mitchell wound up suffering his first-career setback when he was submitted by Topuria last month at UFC 282. It was a rough night for Mitchell, who later revealed he was battling the flu. So if Mitchell wasn’t fit to compete, then why didn’t he withdraw? He said he couldn’t financially afford to.

“I had a couple thousand bucks in my bank account, and (the UFC) told me that, ‘If you don’t take this fight, we’re not finding you one until February,'” Mitchell told ESPN. “They said they’re booked. So, it’s like you can live off a couple thousand bucks in your bank, or you can f*cking fight December 10th. And if not, f*ck off until February.

“I said, ‘You know what? I don’t want to live on a couple thousand bucks until February.’ I would have made it, because I could have scrapped by, and maybe I should have. But at the time, I thought I’d win the fight, brother. I was going in there with the flu to kick somebody’s ass anyways. That just wasn’t the case. I was not capable of kicking ass that night. I was capable of taking an ass kicking. I did do that pretty well.”

Immediately after the loss, Mitchell was seen contemplating retirement to his coaches in the locker room. But Mitchell admits it was only in the heat of the moment.

Mitchell didn’t expect having the flu to impact his cardio and overall performance as much as it did, but he went in there to win and hoped for a bonus, too.

“To say it wasn’t a factor, that would be a lie,” Mitchell said. “I’m not complaining about my financial situation. I’m very happy, I try to invest my money, especially in the real estate, farmland, whatever.”

He continued, “If I could go back, I probably wouldn’t even have shot a takedown, but in the moment, I was not accepting what I was capable of. … If I would have readjusted my strategy, I know I could have done better. I could have probably went all three rounds. But I really gassed myself out shooting a lot of takedowns and stuff like that.”

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MMA Junkie’s 2022 Submission of the Year: Islam Makhachev def. Charles Oliveira

Islam Makhachev finishing the most decorated grappler in UFC history secured him lightweight gold and MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Year for 2022.

With another action-packed year of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie takes a look at the best submissions from January to December 2022.

As voted on by our entire staff, here are the top 10 and winner of MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Year.

Honorable mentions

Michael Bisping advises Paddy Pimblett to ‘humble himself a little bit’

“Stop with this ‘I’m the new cash cow’ sh*t,” Michael Bisping said of rising UFC star Paddy Pimblett’s antics.

[autotag]Michael Bisping[/autotag] isn’t too high on recent comments made by rising UFC star [autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag].

Pimblett (20-3 MMA, 4-0 UFC) is coming off a close decision win over Jared Gordon last month at UFC 282. Prior to his controversial win, Pimblett caught heat after revealing his viewpoint that he should be paid to do interviews – something Bisping disagrees with.

Pimblett undoubtedly has been called out by an array of fighters but has refused to call anyone out himself in order to not give them clout. Bisping believes the upper echelon of the UFC lightweight division would not be gaining any extra traction if Pimblett mentioned their names and that “The Baddy” needs to tone down on the confidence until he puts on impressive performances against top-tier competition.

“I think what Paddy needs to do is just humble himself a little bit,” Bisping said on his “Believe You Me” podcast. “Stop with this ‘I’m the new cash cow’ sh*t. When I asked him who would he want to fight next, ‘I don’t need to say anyone’s name because I am the man. I’m the boy, I’m the cash cow.’ And you’re yet to fight someone ranked. When you’re dominating people, it’s all well and good. When you’re scraping by a victory, it doesn’t have the same effect, and it starts to rub people off the wrong way.

“Nobody in the top 10, certainly in the top five, needs Paddy to give them a rub. Dustin Poirier, Islam Makhachev, Charles Oliveira, these are household names in mixed martial arts. They don’t need Paddy to say their name to get a few Instagram followers. The whole ‘pay me for interviews’ thing, I think that left a bad taste in people’s mouths. Again, I’m not hating. I’m just being honest in what I saw.”

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Being an often disliked and outspoken fighter himself, Bisping, a UFC Hall of Famer, said everything could go back to the way it was for the beloved Pimblett after just one performance. Pimblett’s popularity doesn’t only come from his fighting and personality, but his charitable work and constant preaching for mental health, which has increased his following massively.

“The sport forgives fast and quickly,” Bisping said. “All he’s got to do is go out there, beat someone, and that’s it. It’s all forgotten about. Go out there, smoke someone, be cool and be funny, and all the rest of it and everyone forgets. This sport is about what have you done for me lately. You’re only as good as your last fight.

“Look at me. I made so many mistakes. I was hated. We wouldn’t have a podcast now if I was still hated.”

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MMA Junkie’s 2022 Knockout of the Year: Leon Edwards def. Kamaru Usman

“Pound-for-pound. Headshot. Dead.” Leon Edwards’ stunning finish of Kamaru Usman at UFC 278 is MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Year for 2022.

With another action-packed year of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie takes a look at the best knockouts from January to December 2022.

As voted on by our entire staff, here are the top 10 and winner of MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Year.

Honorable mentions

MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month for December: ‘Wonderboy,’ Kevin Holland battle with broken hands

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from December 2022.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from December 2022: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for December.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.

Nominees

MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Month for December 2022: Ilia Topuria ends Bryce Mitchell’s run

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submission from December 2022.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best submissions from December 2022: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Month award for December.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.

Nominees

Magomed Ankalaev aims to ramp up media presence since ‘to be a great fighter is not enough’

Magomed Ankalaev will look to increase his media presence in pursuit of another title shot.

[autotag]Magomed Ankalaev[/autotag] will look to increase his media presence in pursuit of another UFC title shot.

Ankalaev (18-1-1 MMA, 9-1-1 UFC) failed to capture the vacant light heavyweight title when he battled Jan Blachowicz to a split draw in the UFC 282 main event – a fight he thought the judges robbed him of.

Instead of getting to run things back with Blachowicz, both men were snubbed out of the title picture when the promotion opted to book Glover Teixeira and Jamahal Hill for the vacant belt in the UFC 283 headliner on Jan. 21. According to Ankalaev, the UFC has asked him to promote himself better and that’s what he plans on doing.

“Hi everyone, this is my American account. To be a great fighter is not enough to get my title, I have to become a media active too. @UFC is asking for it, and I will do it.”

Ankalaev was visibly upset with the outcome of his fight against Blachowicz and vowed not to fight in Las Vegas again. But his biggest takeaway is to no longer let the judges decide his fate.

It has been a learning experience. I am not asking for handouts. I am moving forward and I will not leave it up to judges anymore. 2023: I will get the belt🤜

Ankalaev is currently riding a 10-fight unbeaten streak, which includes wins over Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos, Volkan Oezdemir and Nikita Krylov.

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