MORRISTOWN, N.J. – Drew Dober thinks Paddy Pimblett has a lot of growing up to do.
Dober (26-11 MMA, 12-7 UFC) has continuously called out Pimblett (20-3 MMA, 4-0 UFC) but is yet to get his wish of being matched up with him.
Dober compared Pimblett to Jake Paul, one of the most talked-about figures in the fight game who has often been criticized for his level of competition. Dober also pointed to Pimblett’s ballooning up in between camps as a sign of immaturity, but he sees plenty of potential in him.
“Paddy’s name is great, it’s fun,” Dober said Wednesday during UFC 288 media day. “I feel like he’s the Jake Paul of the UFC right now. He’s bringing in a lot of attention. But really, the opportunity that excites me the most is not his name. It’s that O2 Arena in London. Fighting in front of the English crowd would be so much fun.
“I think he has a lot of growing up to do. I made those mistakes in my early 20s as well, inside the octagon and outside the octagon. I think he’s going to mature well as long as he listens to good advice, but he definitely needs some time. So I feel like this injury works out better for him. Just as long as he trains and improves in the areas he needs to improve, and then he just keeps that social status, I think he’s gonna be a Conor McGregor-ish.”
Dober meets Matt Frevola (10-3-1 MMA, 4-3-1 UFC) in Saturday’s featured prelim at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN/ESPN+.
Tied for the most knockouts in UFC lightweight history, Dober thinks he’ll be able to find Frevola’s chin too.
“His chaos and his conditioning,” Dober said of Frevola’s strengths. “I think he comes in like the Tasmanian Devil, and he’s able to keep that up for 15 minutes. He’s overall a complete martial artist – ground, standup, and everything. So, that’s his strengths. I do feel like his engagement, he does get caught quite often and when I catch people, I’m able to put them away.
“So, I’m just gonna be the more polished fighter, but he’s bringing in all that enthusiasm. … He’s gonna fall in love with trying to punch me in the mouth, and he’s gonna leave that chin open, and I’m pretty good at finding it.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 288.
