LAS VEGAS – King Green admits he dropped the ball against Paddy Pimblett.
In his most recent outing, Green (32-16-1 MMA, 13-11-1 UFC) was quickly submitted by Pimblett at UFC 304 last July. Trading barbs with a big star in enemy territory, Green is irked that he wasn’t able to get the last laugh.
“I ain’t going to lie, bro. I’m going to keep this sh*t real with you – that sh*t hurt real bad because we were so (heated),” Green told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a news conference Wednesday. “I had to go all the way over to his pond and deal with all the craziness. I put it all on the line, and sometimes you f*cking go for the best, and sometimes you fall a little short.”
Green will look to rebound when he takes on another rising star in Mauricio Ruffy (11-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC 313 main card opener at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPNews/Disney+, ESPN+).
He chalks up his loss to Pimblett (22-3 MMA, 6-0 UFC) as a costly mistake.
“You ever heard of a blooper? Like a blooper reel when some guy slips on a banana peel and then he falls into a bucket, like some stupid sh*t like that?” Green said. “I’ve had so many fights where I’m like, ‘That’s new on my list.’ I went to go punch him, and he kicked my leg, and then I kind of slipped.
“I went down, so people were like, ‘Why did you shoot on him?’ I’m like, ‘Nah, I was already down there. I kind of just fell into it.’ So I shot and he capitalized on it, and it was a mistake I had made. I f*cking just slipped on a banana peel, and sh*t happens like that. I felt like I lost a Super Bowl.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 313.
