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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Donagh Corby

Paddy Pimblett to return to action at UFC London as second opponent is named

Paddy Pimblett will face Rodrigo Vargas in one of the most anticipated fights on the UFC's return to London.

The Liverpool native was expected to take on Jared Gordon when the promotion lands at the O2 Arena on March 19, but now will face 36-year-old Vargas.

Tom Aspinall will headline the big fight night against Alexander Volkov, while Pimblett will likely participate in the co-main event given his massive star power since debuting last year.

Pimblett blasted onto the lightweight scene in the UFC with a knockout win over Luigi Vendramini last September in Las Vegas, and will get a huge reception on his British homecoming.

"Fight is announced," Pimblett said in a brief Instagram post sharing the confirmation of his and teammate Molly McCann's fights.

"Time for the Scouse Invasion of London and I cannot wait."

The event will be a massive return for Pimblett, who was finally signed to the UFC after defeating Davide Martinez at York Hall behind closed doors almost a year to the day prior to the show.

Paddy Pimblett is back in the octagon on March 19 (Zuffa LLC)

It will have been three years since the promotion last came to the UK when they arrive at the iconic London venue later this year.

They were slated to return with a bout between Leon Edwards and Tyron Woodley in 2020, but that became the first casualty of the coronavirus pandemic restrictions that took place worldwide.

And last September after the UK opened up, they eyed up a September date, but ended up instead bringing a host of Brits including Pimblett and Aspinall to Vegas for a massive fight night.

Molly McCann will also return on March 19 when she faces Luana Carolina in a fight where a win would surely land her in the flyweight rankings alongside fellow Brit Casey O'Neill.

The card will be stacked from top-to-bottom with British and European talent, including three unbeaten prospects and a host of fan favourites.

Will you be heading to the O2 Arena for UFC London on March 19? Let us know in the comments section below!

Former Cage Warriors flyweight champion Jake Hadley will put his 8-0 record on the line against Brazilian Allan Nascimento, while amateur prodigy Muhammad Mokaev will test his mettle against Cody Durden in two big flyweight fights.

And higher up the card unbeaten Welsh bantamweight and former Cage Warriors champion Jack Shore will look to improve to 16-0 against Timur Valiev in one of the better European bouts of the year.

Mike Grundy and Makwan Amirkhani's UFC careers will be on the line when the two top grapplers square off in a featherweight contest, with Arnold Allen and Dan Hooker also a massive clash in the 145lb division.

Hooker was a highly rated lightweight with wins over the likes of Gilbert Burns, Al Iaquinta and Paul Felder before deciding to move down to featherweight following a loss to Islam Makhachev last year.

Veteran Gunnar Nelson will take on Claudio Silva in his return to the cage after three years, while Cory McKenna and Elie Reed will square off as well as Nathaniel wood and Liudvik Sholinian.

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