UFC announces Paddy Pimblett vs. Jared Gordon for UFC 282 in December

Paddy Pimblett’s fourth octagon appearance will come against Jared Gordon at UFC 282 in December.

Pimblett (19-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC), the rising British star, will fight on a numbered card for the first time in his promotional tenure when he meets Gordon (19-5 MMA, 7-4 UFC) in a lightweight bout on the Dec. 10 card, which takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

UFC officials announced the contest in a since-deleted tweet on Saturday (via Twitter):

Pimblett, 27, and Gordon, 34, have been open about wanting to fight each other for over a year. It didn’t materialize until now.

“The Paddy” has quickly made a mark inside the octagon, winning all three of his UFC fights by stoppage since his debut in September 2021. The former Cage Warriors champion most recently competed at UFC Fight Night 208 in July, where he earned a second-round submission over Jordan Leavitt in his native England.

Looking to derail Pimblett will be Gordon, a proven grinding grappler who has won four of his past five fights – all by way of decision. Gordon’s only losses in the past four years have come against Charles Oliveira and Grant Dawson.

The latest UFC 282 lineup now includes:

• Jiri Prochazka vs. Glover Teixeira – for light heavyweight title
• Jan Blachowicz vs. Magomed Ankalaev
• Robbie Lawler vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio
• Alexander Gustafsson vs. Ovince Saint Preux
• Chris Daukaus vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik
• Joaquin Buckley vs. Chris Curtis
• Dricus Du Plessis vs. Darren Till
• Dalcha Lungiambula vs. Edmen Shahbazyan
• Alexander Hernandez vs. Billy Quarantillo
• TJ Brown vs. Erik Perez
• Daniel da Silva vs. Vinicius Salvador
• Ronnie Lawrence vs. Cameron Saaiman
• Jared Gordon vs. Paddy Pimblett