Paddy Pimblett’s weight is an oft-discussed issue.
Though he’s never missed the 155-pound mark, “The Baddy” is a big Lightweight. His size and strength in the cage is definitely a factor in his success, but most of the criticism comes after fights. Time and time again, we’ve seen Pimblett gorging himself on unhealthy food and puffing up significantly between bouts. The frequent weight gain and loss cannot be healthy, and fans are concerned it’ll shorten his career.
What’s crazy is that Pimblett’s weight situation used to be worse! Prior to his UFC career, he primarily fought at 145-pounds, capturing the Cage Warriors Featherweight belt in the process. As he grew older and more muscular, however, the cut grew increasingly desperate and unsafe.
“That cut was disgusting,” Pimblett said of his final days at Featherweight. “The [Julian Erosa weight cut] was bad, and then the one after, I fought Nad Narimani to defend my [Cage Warriors] belt. I ended up eventually losing that fight, but when I had cut weight and I was on weight I went to get a DEXA scan at the university in Liverpool.
“A couple of days after, the doctor looked at it and said, ‘If I would’ve seen this before the fight, I wouldn’t have let you fight.’ I was like one pound away from kidney failure and something with my liver. He said I had no testosterone in my body. He said, ‘If I would have looked at that I would have said you are not fighting.’”
Reminder: Daniel Cormier suffered kidney failure cutting weight for the Olympics in 2008. MMA fighters have died from extreme weight cutting. There is a silver lining to Pimblett’s 2017 ordeal, however. According to the English contender, his medical charts that demonstrated kidney and liver issues are now used by the UFC Performance Institute (PI) as an example of what to avoid.
“I only found out recently a year or two ago that the DEXA scan is used in the PI to tell people how not to cut weight. It doesn’t say it’s me, but I found out that it’s me. I’m the example of how not to cut weight!”
At Lightweight, Pimblett’s cut seems a lot more manageable if still significant. It certainly hasn’t affected his results, as Pimblett is 7-0 inside the Octagon and most recently dominated Michael Chandler to insert himself into the title mix.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
