Intense rivalries can create strange bedfellows and that includes Justin Gaethje getting fired up and defending his former opponent Dustin Poirier from criticism aimed at him by Paddy Pimblett.
The heated exchange during place during the UFC 324 pre-fight press conference on Thurdsay where Gaethje was asked to react to Pimblett’s trash talk, which included a promise to put a beating on him unlike anything he’s ever experienced before. If anything, Gaethje says he actually enjoys Pimblett’s constant rants because it only adds fuel to his fire but he doesn’t enjoy hearing the always outspoken Scouser taking him at fighters who have accomplished far more that he ever has.
“I love it,” Gaethje said about Pimblett’s comments. “I love everything he’s been saying. He definitely sounds overconfident. He’s out here disrespecting legends like Dustin Poirier. I’m going to dog walk this English f*ck on Saturday. Watch.”
In response, Pimblett admitted that he rarely has a kind word to say about Poirier because the feeling seems to be mutual between them.
That said, Pimblett claims he was just offering his brutal, unabashed opinion on Poirier’s final performance prior to retirement where he suffered a five-round decision loss to Max Holloway this past July.
“Dustin’s never got a nice word to say about me,” Pimblett said. “While I was honest and said he looked like shit against [Max Holloway], f*cking hell.
“Stop f*cking crying. I’m saying Dustin looked like shit against Holloway. That was what I said.”
Gaethje, who suffered a brutal knockout loss to Holloway when they met at UFC 300, doesn’t expect that Pimblett would fare much better if he ever went up against Hawaiian.
“You would also look like shit against Holloway,” Gaethje fired back. “You won’t be fighting him.”
Obviously, Pimblett disagreed and with reigning UFC lightweight champion Ilia Topuria still out of action dealing with personal issues, he touted Holloway as a potential opponent for the future.
:We’ll see once I beat you,” Pimblett said to Gaethje. “I could up fighting him.”
What started out as a fairly cordial relationship leading to UFC 324, Pimblett and Gaethje have suddenly decided to begin dishing out insults, which only ratchets up the anticipation for the fight between them in the UFC 324 main event.
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