Dan Hooker doesn't want to "burst the bubble" by fighting Paddy Pimblett
UFC lightweight Dan Hooker has stated that he doesn't want to be the fighter that derails the hype train of British MMA star Paddy Pimblett.
Pimblett is one of the UFC's fastest rising stars after making his debut for the organization last year. The 27-year-old is a former Cage Warriors featherweight champion and has impressed each time he's stepped into the UFC octagon.
'The Baddy' has won all three of his bouts via either a KO or submission and earned a Performance of the Night bonus in each.
The Liverpudlian is set to face Jared Gordon at UFC 282 this weekend. Gordon is considered to be the toughest opponent that Pimblett will face so far as he has racked up 11 fights in the UFC, which includes a bout with Charles Oliveira.
In an interview with The Mac Life, Dan Hooker stated that he likes Paddy Pimblett but doesn't think it would be fair on the Englishman to have his first real test in the octagon be against him:
"Let's all be honest, he's getting taken care of, you know what I mean? He's not getting tough match-ups just yet. I wouldn't want to fight him just yet. I like him, I like him, I wouldn't want to fight him. I'd make him look silly, I don't want to burst the bubble and that's just being honest... Hand on my heart I think I'd do whatever I'd want to that kid."
Catch the full interview with Dan Hooker here:
Paddy Pimblett responds to Ariel Helwani
Paddy Pimblett has been at the heart of the controversy this week after he and Dana White took shots at Ariel Helwani on Pimblett's Chattin Pony podcast.
The 27-year-old and the UFC president took shots at the MMA journalist, deciding that he only sees fighters as a source of revenue and that he doesn't care about being a journalist.
Helwani responded to the jabs by the pair, revealing that he had been sent a voicemail from Pimblett asking to be on the podcast some time ago. The Canadian-American then decided to cancel the potential interview after learning Pimblett wanted to be paid for it.
UNREAL!
Paddy Pimblett Sends a message to Ariel begging for an Interview... then asks for a Payment...
@arielhelwani https://t.co/7sejpsxR7T
'The Baddy' has since fired back at Ariel Helwani in an interview with CBS Sports. According to the Liverpudlian, the message was sent asking for a friendly catch-up, not an interview:
“The voice memo when I said, ‘Do you want to meet up?’ didn’t mention an interview. To like have a drink or have something to eat as like a friend, but he obviously never saw me as a friend where I saw him as a friend. He only ever saw me as pound signs and dollar signs. I was just a commodity to him.”
Catch Paddy Pimblett's response here: