Justin Gaethje survived a five-round war with a relentless Paddy Pimblett to claim the interim UFC lightweight championship by unanimous decision in a bloody, hard-hitting fight in Las Vegas.
The experienced American's victory ended Pimblett's nine-match winning streak in the main event of UFC 324 on Saturday, but Gaethje paid tribute to the Liverpool fighter's durability and heart.
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“Now that Scouser won't be knocked down,” he said after the judges scored the fight 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46, in which the rising MMA star walked away with his head held high.
“He's very dangerous, he had a good moment… a young kid, a dangerous kid. I had to steal his drive and his confidence,” Gaethje said.
Pimblett struck first in the first round, but the tide quickly turned when Gaethje hit him with a hard left hand. The American followed him to the mat with hard ground strikes before the Brit got to his feet.
A right hand left Pimblett on the canvas again in the second and he was lucky to survive the round as Gaethje punched until the horn sounded.
However, despite a bloody nose and cuts to his face, Pimblett landed some clean flurries in the third round that had Gaethje reeling, and the round was briefly stopped after a low blow had the 37-year-old American wincing.
The fourth round once again went in Gaethje's favor after he absorbed some early pressure, repeatedly finding his mark with strong right hands.
The roaring crowd rose to its feet as the final round began and an early slip by Gaethje opened the door for Pimblett, who unleashed a flurry of punches.
Gaethje characteristically responded with a strong right hand and both fighters pushed hard to finish, with Pimblett coming in with a strong final flurry.
Pimblett showed grace in defeat.
“I know how tough I am, I don't need to prove it to anyone. I wanted to walk away with that belt, but there's no other man I'd rather lose to than 'The Highlight,'” Pimblett said.
“Gaethje is someone I loved watching as a kid, watching the UFC. He shows why he's a legend right there. I thought 48-47 was a fair scorecard.
“You live and you learn. I'm 31 years old. I'll come back better, it's as simple as that. You haven't seen the last of me.”
Gaethje's victory gave him the second interim lightweight championship of his career and sets up an undisputed title fight against Ilia Topuria, who retired last November amid growing personal problems but is expected to return sometime in 2026.
The loss was Pimblett's first in the UFC since arriving from his native England, snapping a nine-fight winning streak and dropping him to 23-4-0 in his career.
Sean O'Malley, one of the UFC's biggest stars, ended a two-fight losing streak in the co-main event with a controversial unanimous decision victory over China's Song Yadong.
Meanwhile, Waldo Cortés-Acosta of the Dominican Republic defeated Derrick Lewis by knockout at 3:14 of the second round.
In the women's fights, Brazil's Natalia Silva defeated Rose Namajunas by unanimous decision in a potential flyweight title eliminator, although the controversial result was met with unanimous dismay from a Las Vegas crowd who clearly believed Namajunas did enough to pull off the upset against Silva.
The performance marks Silva's 14th consecutive victory and his eighth consecutive victory in the flyweight division to improve his overall record to 20-5-1. More importantly, it can line her up for a title shot against Valentina Shevchenko later this year.
In the opening fight of the main card, Brazilian favorite Jean Silva bounced back from his loss against Diego Lopes in September, defeating England's Arnold Allen in a fight that was decided in the third round on two of three official scorecards.
Dominick Cruz, two-time bantamweight champion and holder of the division's inaugural belt, was announced as the first inductee into the 2026 UFC Hall of Fame at the conclusion of the preliminary show. Cruz will be inducted into the “Modern Era Wing,” which honors fighters who debuted after the first sanctioned UFC event under unified rules was held on Nov. 17, 2000.
