Paddy Pimblett may not get to compete in 2023.
Pimblett (20-3 MMA, 4-0 UFC) suffered an ankle injury which required surgery in his decision win over Jared Gordon at UFC 282 this past December.
“The Baddy” only went under the knife in March, and it appears his ankle injury is worse than he anticipated.
“I had to get surgery after my last fight,” Pimblett told Sky Sports. “Last fight, I hurt my foot in the first round, in like the first minute or two, threw a kick, hurt it. I felt it, like, but obviously we crack on, we get through the fight. At the end of the fight, I remember going back to the medical room and being just saying, ‘My foot’s sore.’
“Couldn’t get it looked at properly until I got home. Then, when the actual swelling went down, I didn’t know when to get surgery. It was a lot worse than we thought. I had to get inner and outer-ligament surgery, well reconstruction, so, it’s big.”
The UFC will return to London for the second time this year on July 22, but Pimblett won’t be healthy in time. In fact, the popular Scouser says he might not even get to fight this year.
“Could be for another six weeks,” Pimblett said. “I’ve already been on them (crutches) for six, six and a half… I’ll be lucky to fight this year.”
Prior to his controversial win over Gordon, Pimblett scored three-straight Performance of the Night finishes in the octagon over Luigi Vendramini, Rodrigo Vargas, and Jordan Leavitt.
