Rising lightweight star Paddy Pimblett faced veteran Jared Gordon in the UFC 282 co-main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Pimblett pressured Gordon from the start of the fight. Gordon backed Pimblett up with a left hand. Gordon landed a second left hook that put Pimblett on his heels. Gordon’s left hand repeatedly found a home. Pimblett’s chin held up and he fired back combinations.
Pimblett picked up the pace in the second half of the round. The two stood in front of each other and exchanged. In the closing seconds of the round Pimblett looked to get the fight to the ground but Gordon ended up in top position.
Pimblett dictated the pace in the early going of the second frame. Gordon inched forward with a combination. Gordon closed the distance and looked to get Pimblett on the ground. Pimblett locked on a choke but Gordon defended the submission attempt. Pimblett worked his back to his feet and the two battled inside the clinch.
On the break, Gordon landed a clean right hand. Pimblett answered with a right hand of his own. After an exchange of leg kicks, Gordon tried to secure a takedown. Pimblett delivered short punches and knees in the clinch before circling free. Pimblett landed a big right hand and Gordon returned fire. After an accidental eye poke, referee Herb Dean warned Pimblett. Pimblett ended the round landing a combination.
Gordon pressed forward in the third round. He quickly looked for a takedown. Pimblett quickly got back to his feet but Ground kept the pressure on. For more than two minutes Gordon worked to get a takedown.
With two minutes remaining, Pimblett circled free but Gordon clinched and pressed “The Baddy” against the fence. Late in the round, Gordon secured the takedown. Pimblett escaped out the backdoor and Gordon scrambled to his feet. Pimblett worked to take Gordon’s back. It would be left to the judges to decide.
All three judges scored the fight 29-28 for Pimblett by unanimous decision. It was an extremely close fight, but Pimblett didn’t think so.
“That wasn’t close. He just controlled me in the third,” Pimblett said in his post-fight interview. “
“I won the first two rounds and I coasted in the third. I knew I was two rounds up so I didn’t want to do nothing dangerous and risk losing the fight. I knew for a fact that I won the first two rounds pretty easily.”
Paddy Pimblett decisions Jared Gordon in UFC 282 co-main event
