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Matt Brown praises Paddy Pimblett after he ‘stole the f*cking show’ at UFC 329 but still not sold on him as championship material

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2 months ago

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Matt Brown praises Paddy Pimblett after he ‘stole the f*cking show’ at UFC 329 but still not sold on him as championship material

Paddy Pimblett was already a hugely popular fighter heading into UFC 329, but his stunning performance coupled with Conor McGregor's comeback ending in disaster, arguably vaulted “The Baddy†into superstar status with his win.

While McGregor's fight lasted just 69 seconds after he blew out his knee, Pimblett dispatched Saint Denis in less time with a modified D'arce choke and the crowd erupted at both his walkout and his celebration in victory. Pimblett undoubtedly took a huge step forward in his career with that kind of performance, especially with huge viewership numbers for the event with so many people tuning in to watch McGregor's return to action.

“Paddy stole the show. 100%,†UFC legend Matt Brown said about his performance on The Fighter vs. The Writer. “That was his night. Good for him. He lived up to the expectations. Amazing submission on BSD.

“Paddy's done all the right things. He's saying all the right things. He's doing all the right things. He deserves everything that he gets.â€

There's no telling what would have happened if McGregor didn't suffer a devastating knee injury, but he was a sizable underdog going into his fight against Max Holloway. Even if he didn't get injured, McGregor's night could have still very easily ended in defeat.

But Pimblett didn't even have to face the Irish superstar to benefit from his presence as the main event for the same card. In fact, Brown sees a lot of similarities in how McGregor first came to fame in the UFC and now Pimblett is following the same blueprint.

“I watched, it came on randomly on Instagram, it was a little thing Bill Burr was saying about comedians,†Brown explained. “He said the way to make it as a comedian is you go out there open up for other guys and you f*cking kill it, so much that the main event guy doesn't have a chance, and they bomb because you did so well. It just rung in my mind, that was exactly what Paddy did. He stole the f*cking show, it was his night. Conor bombed and you've got to give it to Paddy. He f*cking did it right.

“Everybody is singing his song and dancing. I don't think I've ever seen anything like that before. Everybody was loving the energy, the excitement and then he f*cking got it done the way he got it done. It's just lightning in a bottle. It feels like Conor McGregor back in his day.â€

Of course, McGregor still had plenty of doubters as he climbed up the ranks in the featherweight division, but he proved the hype was real when he flattened Jose Aldo to become UFC champion for the first time, and then he eventually conquered a second division with a lopsided win over Eddie Alvarez.

That's where Brown suspects that Pimblett is going to run into problems as he tries to work his way towards another title shot.

Back in January, Pimblett put up a valiant effort but still ultimately lost in a slugfest with Justin Gaethje in an interim lightweight title fight. Now Gaethje is champion, and he's already said he's not interesting in running it back with Pimblett any time soon.

Former champion Ilia Topuria is probably the biggest fight possible for Pimblett outside of a title shot but that's far from an easy matchup for anybody. Toss in a mauling wrestler like Arman Tsarukyan, and a past champion like Charles Oliveira, who is still lingering in the top five rankings, and Pimblett's path to gold isn't exactly a cake walk.

“I'll tell you, I know I'll take a lot of shit on this but skill wise, I'm still just not sold on Paddy yet,†Brown said. “I hope he proves me wrong. I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer, or a f*cking a**hole over here, but I'm just not sold on him. We'll see. I hope he proves me wrong.â€

While lightweight has always been lauded as the best division in the sport, there are definitely times when it's been easier to earn a title shot. That's not the case right now where Pimblett is staring down a number of potentially tough fights to get there plus a past loss to the current champion doesn't help his cause.

Brown admits he had similar doubts about McGregor during his climb up the ladder, but he suspects Pimblett might run into even more problems as he chases a championship.

“Maybe I have a little bit of pessimism in me or non-belief, maybe more than I should have, but I didn't believe in Conor either back in the day,†Brown said. “But it kind of feels the same way with Paddy. The difference is we have seen Paddy, he got beat up pretty bad by Justin Gaethje. I think we have a better idea of what his level is. The dude f*cking got it done against BSD. That's a tough fight, and the way he did was absolutely impressive. Good for him.â€

“The tough part for Paddy, I just don't think he has the ceiling that Conor had. He might do great things. He might totally prove me wrong. Conor was double champ. Do you think Paddy would be double champ, ever? I have a hard time believing that. Star power wise, he certainly felt like he stole the show, and it felt like it was passing of the torch but you've got to live up to it, too. You've got to do big, amazing things. You've got to win a title at least and that's not looking so great for Paddy right now.â€

Listen to new episodes of The Fighter vs. The Writer every Tuesday with audio only versions of the podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and iHeartRadio

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UFC 331: 'Van vs. Pantoja 2' Live Results and Highlights

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3 hours ago

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September 20, 2026

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UFC 331: 'Van vs. Pantoja 2' Live Results and Highlights
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Mike Perry speaks out after suffering injury during upset loss to Brandon Jenkins: “Health is wealthâ€

The Octagon returns to Los Angeles for tonight's UFC 331 event, a 12-bout fight card headlined by Joshua Van vs. Alexandre Pantoja 2.

Van and Pantoja originally collided at UFC 323 in December of last year, where ‘The Fearless' walked away with the promotion's coveted men's flyweight title after ‘The Cannibal' suffered a nasty arm injury the rendered him unable to continue (see that here).

Joshua Van (17-2 MMA) has since successfully defended the 125lbs strap, this after earning a fifth-round TKO victory over Japanese standout Tatsuro Taira. The 24-year-old will enter tonight's rematch sporting a seven-fight winning streak.

Meanwhile, Alexandre Pantoja (30-6 MMA) will be returning to the Octagon for the first time since suffering the aforementioned arm injury against Van at UFC 323. Prior to that setback, ‘The Cannibal' was riding a seven-fight winning streak, a stretch which included four successful title defenses over the likes of Brandon Royval, Steve Erceg, Kai Asakura and Kai Kara-France.

UFC 331 is co-headlined by a highly anticipated lightweight bout featuring Arman Tsarukyan taking on Maurício Ruffy.

(via Zuffa LLC)

Tsarukyan (23-3 MMA) will enter the contest on a five-fight winning streak, with his most recent Octagon victory coming against Dan Hooker via second-round submission in November of 2025. Prior to that triumph, ‘Batman' had earned a split decision win over current BMF title holder Charles Oliveira at UFC 300.

Meanwhile, Maurício Ruffy (14-2 MMA) was most previously seen in action at June's UFC Freedom 250 event, where he scored an impressive first-round TKO win over former lightweight title challenger Michael Chandler. The hard-hitting Brazilian has gone 4-1 over his past five fights, with his lone setback in that time coming against Benoit Saint Denis by way of submission.

If that wasn't enough to get you interested, tonight's UFC 331 main card lineup also features a featherweight matchup between Patrício Pitbull and Doo Ho Choi.

Pitbull (37-9 MMA) will enter the bout looking to rebound, this after suffering a unanimous decision loss to Aaron Pico at April's UFC 327 event. Prior to that setback, the former Bellator champion was coming off a unanimous decision victory over Dan Ige.

Meanwhile, Doo Ho Choi (17-4-1 MMA) currently boasts a three-fight winning streak, this after scoring TKO victories over Bill Algeo, Nate Landwehr and Daniel Santos. Prior to those impressive finishes, the Korean standout had fought Kyle Nelson to a majority draw.

Get all of tonight's live results and highlights below (refresh for updates):

UFC 331 Main Card (Paramount+, 9 p.m. ET)

Joshua Van (125) vs. Alexandre Pantoja (125) – Van def. Pantoja by unanimous decision (49–46, 49–47, 50–45)

Arman Tsarukyan (156) vs. Mauricio Ruffy (155) – Tsarukyan def. Ruffy via KO (elbow) at 4:57 of Round 1

Patricio Pitbull (145.5) vs. Doo Ho Choi (146) – Pitbull def. Choi via KO (punches) at 3:28 of Round 1

Gable Steveson (240) vs. Sean Sharaf (241) – Sharaf def. Steveson via KO (punch) at 0:12 of Round 1

Alonzo Menifield (205.5) vs. Iwo Baraniewski (206) – Menifield def. Baraniewski by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

UFC 331 Prelims (Paramount+, 7 p.m. ET)

Marlon Vera (136) vs. Charles Jourdain (135) – Vera def. Jourdain via TKO at 2:02 of Round 3

Tai Tuivasa (264.5) vs. Robelis Despaigne (263) – Despaigne def. Tuivasa by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Michael Aswell (146) vs. Joo Sang Yoo (145.5) – Aswell def. Yoo by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Ryan Gandra (186) vs. Ozzy Diaz (186) – Gandra def. Diaz via TKO (punches) at 2:04 of Round 1

UFC 331 Early Prelims (Paramount+, 5:30 p.m. ET)

Edmen Shahbazyan (185) vs. Brunno Ferreira (184.5) – Shahbazyan def. Ferreira by unanimous decision (29-28 x2, 30-27)

Casey O'Neill (125) vs. Eduarda Moura (125.5) – O'Neil def. Moura via submission (armbar) at 3:22 of Round 1

Giga Chikadze (146) vs. Joanderson Brito (145.5) – Brito def. Chikadze via KO (punches) at 1:57 of Round 1

Who are you picking to win tonight's flyweight title fight rematch between Joshua Van and Alexandre Pantoja? Share your predictions in the comment section Penn Nation!

This article appeared first on BJPENN.COM

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UFC 331: Live updates, highlights for Van vs. Pantoja

Published

4 hours ago

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September 19, 2026

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UFC 331: Live updates, highlights for Van vs. Pantoja

This is the UFC 331 live blog for Alonzo Menifield vs. Iwo Baraniewski, the main card light heavyweight bout Saturday at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

Menifield (18-7-1) heads into Saturday night's event as the underdog, but the 205-pound veteran has a habit of spoiling the plans of the matchmakers. This past May, he headed into enemy territory to win a thrilling striking battle against China's Zhang Mingyang, and was previously the first man to defeat French prospect Oumar Sy. He has won three of his past four fights.

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UFC 331 results: Alonzo Menifield wins split decision over Iwo Baraniewski despite mangled, broken thumb

Published

6 hours ago

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September 19, 2026

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UFC 331 results: Alonzo Menifield wins split decision over Iwo Baraniewski despite mangled, broken thumb

Alonzo Menifield pulled off one of the biggest wins of his career at UFC 331 and he did it despite competing with a mangled thumb that was injured in the opening round.

Menifield showed off the gruesome injury afterwards and revealed it actually happened in the first round but he refused to stop fighting and ultimately won a split decision with scores reading 29-28, 29-28, 28-29 with two judges giving him the fight and the victory.

The light heavyweights were quick to throw with power to start the fight but neither of them were landing just yet. Baraniewski welcomed Menifield into the pocket as they were unloading huge punches.

Menifield connected with a slick combination but Baraniewski showed no fear as he kept firing back and he hurt his opponent as they battled against the cage. Menifield landed a solid punch but Baraniewski returned fire and connected with the better strikes as the light heavyweights hit the floor.

Baraniewski continued to find a home for his combinations but Menifield was evasive enough to avoid a potential knockdown or knockout.

As round two got started, Menifield marched forward and unloaded a barrage of punches in succession before ending up in the clinch with Baraniewskij, jockeying for position against the cage. After they separated, Baraniewski and Menifield just started trading bombs but they refused to go down despite landing with some seriously heavy leather.

With five minutes remaining, the ringside physician paused the action to check on Menifield's left thumb, which looked like it was barely connected to the hand. But Menifield insisted that he wanted to keep going so the fight continued despite effectively competing with a broken thumb.

The slugfest continued with both fighters landing at times, although Menifield seemed to do a big more damage as time ticked away to the final horn. Considering he was fighting with an injury that would send most fighters running for the doctor, Menifield somehow found a way to win as he picks up his second win in a row overall and hands Baraniewski the first loss of his professional career.

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