Paddy Pimblett (22-3 MMA, 6-0 UFC) has been discredited often since joining the UFC roster. However, he proved himself as a true dark horse in the race as he became the first fighter to submit King Green in the Octagon, needing less than a round to choke him last month at UFC 304. Pimblett won a whopping $200,000 bonus for his win over Green. Regardless, money wasn’t the only thing that Pimblett earned that night.

The finish earned Pimblett a spot in the UFC lightweight rankings, while also earning him the respect of the fans as well as the UFC roster. After defeating Green, Pimblett challenged Renato Moicano, who is currently scheduled to face Benoit Saint-Denis in a UFC Fight Night main event on September 28 in Paris. But it seems like he also has his eyes set on the lightweight championship belt and, he wants to earn it the way Sean O’Malley earned his belt before he goes one-on-one against his final boss, Islam Makhachev.

Many criticized the way Sean O’Malley earned his shot at the UFC bantamweight belt. While he did fight and win the belt against Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292, the path leading to this belt did not contain major hurdles. Most of the fighters he faced in his career were not major stars in the UFC and were usually low on the pound-for-pound rankings. The only major fight one can recall would be his round three victory over Petr Yan.

Similarly, he wants to face Charles Oliveria as his major fight before he goes on to face Islam Makhachev. Naming his future opponents in mind, he said, “I want a similar route to the title like O’Malley. Moicano then Oliveira.” However, he must not forget that Oliveira can be a really formidable opponent for the underdog. Do Bronx faced the Boogeyman Tony Ferguson before El Cucuy went on his major losing streak. And any UFC fan can easily tell you how scary it was back then to face someone like Prime Ferguson. He also had an 11-fight win streak leading up to his title win. Even after winning his title against Michael Chandler, Do Bronx defended it against Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje. Still proving that he was surely being given the toughest battles.

And finally, he succumbed to Islam Makhachev’s Arm Triangle Choke at UFC 280 to lose his title. So it is no wonder that Pimblett wants the O’Malley path to success. But choosing a fight against Oliveira could prove to be a major roadblock. However, likely, his journey might not reach the end his fans would’ve wanted since a few months ago Pimblett revealed that he might not continue with the UFC despite the result of his match against Bobby Green.

Paddy Pimblett might quit the Dana White-led promotion

Back in July, in what came as a big surprise to many fans, Paddy Pimblett confessed that he was just one fight away from ending his UFC contract. And it comes just after three years and five fights into the company. A short duration could make anyone believe that “The Baddy” was just starting with Dana White’s company but it may not be so.

He voiced, “It goes without saying: I wouldn’t want to go to a different organization. UFC is the cream of the crop. It’s the main place. When you say to people, ‘I do MMA.’ Most of them go, ‘What’s that?’ You say, ‘UFC.’ People don’t even know what MMA is. They know what UFC is. You never know, though. Some of these stupid YouTubers who are boxing could end up offering me millions to end up fighting one of them. So we’ll see what happens.”

The British fighter spoke about his future and, although he lavished praise on the UFC, he also did not define one hundred percent that he would continue competing despite his win against Bobby Green. Is it just a pressure strategy or is there something more?

So what do you think? Will Pimblett quit the UFC or fight his way to the top? Let us know in the comments.