"Paddy's stare-down did 1.3 million on my Instagram" - Dana White on Paddy Pimblett's rising superstardom
As per Dana White, Paddy Pimblett's staredown ahead of UFC London received 1.3 million views on his Instagram. The UFC president revealed the figures to emphasize 'The Baddy's' rising stardom.
White also revealed that the views on Pimblett's staredown greatly outnumbered those for the staredown between Alexander Volkov and Tom Aspinall, who headlined the card. The 52-year old said in the aftermath of UFC London:
"I think the best way I can explain it to you is, I posted the staredowns for the heavyweights, you know, the main event. And they did a 120,000 views. Paddy's staredown did 1.3 million on my Instagram."
Watch Dana White weigh in on Pimblett's stardom below:
Paddy Pimblett had already made a name for himself on the global MMA circuit before signing with the UFC. A former Cage Warriors lightweight champion, the Liverpudlian often drew comparisons to Conor McGregor.
Pimblett got an opportunity to fight at UFC London after a first-round TKO victory over Luigi Vendramini in his UFC debut last year. The Liverpudlian did not disappoint the English fans, scoring a spectacular comeback victory over Rodrigo 'Kazula' Vargas via first-round submission.
Paddy Pimblett believes he will be bigger than Conor McGregor
Paddy Pimblett has been dismissive of his comparisons with Conor McGregor since he came into the UFC. 'The Baddy' refuses to be a copy of any superstar and believes he can make a name for himself.
Pimblett also recently claimed that he would be a bigger superstar than 'The Notorious'. While he is flattered to be compared to McGregor, the 27-year-old thinks he can rope in more fans. He said ahead of his UFC London:
"It's a flattering compliment [to be compared to McGregor] because of what the man has done for the sport. He is the biggest star the sport's ever seen, but I know I am going to be bigger than him because I'm going to bring so many more eyes to this sport. Where he brought 20-odd-year-olds to the sport, I'm going to bring four, five, six, seven, eight-year-olds into this sport who are going to be MMA fans for the rest of their lives."
Watch Pimblett weigh in on comparisons to McGregor below: