Disgraced UFC star TJ Dillashaw insists Paddy Pimblett 's eating habits will prevent him taking a short-notice fight in the promotion.
Pimblett, who picked up his third successive UFC win last weekend, is a self-declared 'foodie' who often piles on a lot of weight outside of his training camp. Following his win against Kazula Vargas in March, 'The Baddy' put on over 20kg in less than two weeks after going on a 11,000 calorie binge and indulging on doughnuts, crisps and easter eggs.
Almost a week on from his win against Jordan Leavitt and Pimblett is yet to reveal whether he was gone on another post-fight binge. Former two-time UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw, who previously stated Pimblett's eating habits will hinder his title hopes, thinks the Liverpudlian will be unable to take any short-notice opportunities if he piles on the pounds after fights.
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“When you’re coming up in the UFC, you should be able to take fights on a week’s notice. Right after I fought, seven days apart I fought a fight when I was coming into the UFC because I was always in the gym, always getting better. I was ready," he said on The MMA Hour. "If you balloon up 30-40 pounds, how can you take a fight that fast? You’re obviously not in the gym. You’re out living life, getting fat eating ad drinking. I know how these fight camps go and you want to let loose.”
Dillashaw's UFC accomplishments were called into question when he was handed a three-year ban after testing positive for the performance-enhancing drug erythropoietin (EPO) in 2019. Pimblett labelled the former champion a "cheating juice head" after he commented on his weight gain.
Pimblett has previously admitted he will be a diabetic when he retires from fighting, insisting his eating habits will only get worse once his fighting career is over. Dillashaw is not the first fighter to question Pimblett's eating habits, with fellow UFC star Sean O'Malley and boxing legend Ricky Hatton also voicing their concern on the topic.
Dillashaw previously said on The Schaub Show about Pimblett's diet: "He's loving diabetes. That's like a recipe for just destroying your body. I guess there's one thing if I'm looking at it.I'm not trying to clown on him but that's something he's going to have to figure out with age, right? He's young and this is a full-time job. This isn't a job where you want to be a fighter. You have to be a fighter."
