Paddy Pimblett believes he has to “make a statement” against Tony Ferguson to prove he deserves a ranked opponent

Paddy Pimblett knows he has to make a statement against Tony Ferguson at UFC 296.

Pimblett is set to fight for the first time in a year as he takes on Ferguson on Dec. 16. It’s a big fight for both of their careers, as Pimblett has a ton of hype while Ferguson is on a seven-fight losing skid.

Given that, Tony Ferguson is on a losing skid, Paddy Pimblett knows he has to make a statement and finish ‘El Cucuy’ to prove he belongs in the top-15.

“Can’t get ahead of myself, especially after my last performance,” Paddy Pimblett said to The Schmo. “All I’m thinking about now is coming out and finishing Tony Ferguson in the first round, you know what I mean. Make a statement, let everyone know what they were missing, and then I’ll start looking at ranked opponents in the new year.”

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Not only does Paddy Pimblett expect to make a statement against Tony Ferguson, but he’s hailing this The Baddy 2.0. Pimblett believes the time off has only helped him and he’s confident a statement will be made at UFC 296.

“As I said, I’ve got a statement to make, it’s been a while since I’ve had so long outside the cage. By the time I fight, I’ll have over a year out of the cage. The amount of training I’ve done to get better and I’m just a different fighter. It’s gonna be The Baddy 2.0, a new mythical fighter is going to get unlocked,” Pimblett said.

Paddy Pimblett enters his UFC 296 fight against Tony Ferguson with a 20-3 record. He’s currently 4-0 in the UFC and coming off a controversial decision win over Jared Gordon last December. Prior to that, he beat Jordan Leavitt by submission, Kazula Vargas by submission, and Luigi Vendramini by KO.