Preview: UFC Fight Night 208 ‘Blaydes vs. Aspinall’

Lightweights

Paddy Pimblett (18-3 | 2-0 UFC) vs. Jordan Leavitt (10-1 | 3-1 UFC)

Odds: Pimblett (-245), Leavitt (+205)

With the UFC's return to London also comes the return of the Paddy Pimblett show. "The Baddy" has been talked about as a potential UFC signee for years, particularly around the promotion's 2018 card in Pimblett's native Liverpool, but it wasn't until September of last year that Pimblett made his UFC debut. The delay should serve Pimblett well, as he's filled out physically - beyond his tendency to balloon in between fight camps - to the point of being a much more effective fighter, even if everyone seems to be on the same page that Pimblett's more of a charismatic action fighter than someone with championship-level upside. Pimblett's a willing striker but a wild one, leaving himself defensively open in the hopes of getting his fights to the mat, as Pimblett is at his best as a submission artist. And that's been the story for both of his UFC bouts thus far - Luigi Vendramini and Rodrigo Vargas were each able to clip Pimblett badly, but the Scouser eventually found his way to a submission victory within the first frame. The UFC mixed things up a bit here by pitting Pimblett against Leavitt, who's the first opponent of Pimblett's tenure that can hang with him on the mat. "The Monkey King" is a talented grappler, but as of now that's essentially the extent of what makes Leavitt effective; he's an improving striker, but still a cautious and not particularly powerful one, and Leavitt mostly got out-wrestled by Claudio Puelles. There's a chance that Leavitt could catch Pimblett unawares on the mat, but this could be a fight where Pimblett's over-aggressive nature on the feet actually pays off; Leavitt doesn't pose much of a knockout threat and could quickly get overwhelmed by Pimblett's sheer aggression. It's easy to see Pimblett knocking Leavitt loopy and finding something on the mat while the American attempts to recover; the pick is Pimblett via first-round submission.

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Blaydes vs. Aspinall
Hermansson vs. Curtis
Pimblett vs. Leavitt
Krylov vs. Gustafsson
McCann vs. Goldy
Craig vs. Oezdemir
The Prelims