Tomorrow night on the PPV main card of UFC 304, we are going to see a very fun matchup in the lightweight division. England’s own Paddy “The Baddy” Pimblett (21-3) will look to remain unbeaten inside the octagon while climbing into the rankings as he takes on 15th ranked King Green (32-15-1).
King Green (Formerly Bobby Green) officially changed his first name ahead of this matchup against Paddy Pimblett. He’s coming off a helluva performance at UFC 300 where he completely butchered Jim Miller over the course of three rounds. That made Green 3-1 in his last four which included a tremendous knockout over top contender Grand Dawson.
Paddy Pimblett entered the UFC with a ton of hype. He backed that hype up by scoring first round finishes in his first three fights. Then, he fought Jared Gordon. In a fight where it seemed that only Pimblett and the three judges thought he won, Pimblett lost a ton of steam. He looked very solid last December in a return win over former interim champion Tony Ferguson. However, he needs a big performance at UFC 304 if he wants to get some of that hype back.
UFC 304 Prediction
Paddy Pimblett surprised me with his striking against Tony Ferguson in his last fight. My biggest knock on Pimblett was his striking and striking defense was horrible in his first few UFC fights. However, he really looked like he cleaned things up against Ferguson. That said, he doesn’t want to stand with King Green.
While Pimblett likely has the power advantage, King Green is on a different level with his striking. He’s so much faster and his defense is incredibly slick. If Pimblett tries to stand with Green over three rounds, he’s going to lose a lopsided decision unless the judges bail him out again.
Pimblett needs to wrestle and use his grappling. That’s where he can win this fight. It’s not going to be easy because King Green has good takedown defense, but that’s where he needs to fight. I think Pimblett will have success wrestling at UFC 304, but I do think Green keeps it standing enough to make this a very close fight. That said, a close fight with Pimblett in the UK, no way Green wins a decision and that’s why I’m going with Pimblett here.
Prediction: Paddy Pimblett by Decision