Matt “Steamrolla” Frevola lived up to his fighting moniker at UFC 281 as he demolished Ottman Azaitar, before turning his attention to Paddy “The Baddy” Pimblett.
Frevola put on one of the performances of the night to flatten previously undefeated Azaitar via vicious first-round knockout at Madison Square Garden, then used his mic time to issue a clear callout of the larger-than-life Liverpudlian.
“Unreal. Honestly, it feels like a dream right now,” he said after his spectacular victory.
“Listen up. ‘Paddy the Baddy’ better win that fight, because me and Paddy in London? That’s the fight to make!”
The fight Frevola mentioned was Pimblett’s upcoming matchup with Jared Gordon at UFC 282, which takes place in Las Vegas in December. If the Englishman gets through that bout with a win, Frevola said he’d love to make the flight from New York to London to face him at The O2 Arena early in 2023.
“This is definitely the best moment (of my career), but every next moment is the best,” he said.
“The moment before this one was the best and when I knock out Paddy in London that’ll be the best moment.
“Honestly, Paddy’s got a tough fight. Jared Gordon is very good. But, win lose or draw – even if Paddy goes out there and gets smoked by Jared – I want to fight Paddy in London.”
While some fighters aren’t keen on Pimblett’s outgoing personality, Frevola is quite the opposite, and said he appreciates the energy the Englishman brings to the UFC.
“I love the atmosphere he brings to the fight game, it’s electric,” he said
“He’s like the way Conor McGregor was coming up, he brings such an atmosphere to the fight. It’s amazing. He’s great fighter, and I think me and him will go out there and bang and put on a great fight for the fans.
“I love fighting at home, putting on (a show) for the New York, for Long Island. But I also love travelling and I think March in London makes a lot of sense.”
A fight with Pimblett is clearly an assignment Frevola would relish and, while he offered a few potential scenarios for how the fight would play out, he said the one thing he would predict was a fun matchup for the fans.
“Maybe I rock him and knock him out and finish him. Maybe we wrestle and do a little grappling. I love to grapple, as well. He’s a well-rounded mixed martial artist, so am I, so I think it’ll be a fun fight everywhere.”