Why now is the perfect time for UFC to book Conor McGregor vs. Paddy Pimblett in a PPV main event

The pair of stars squaring off would not only be great theater, but it would provide some much-need answers for both

It may not seem like the best solution on the surface given rising star and UFC lightweight prospect Paddy Pimblett's recent hiccups -- both inside the Octagon and in the court of public opinion -- yet there's a case to be made for an immediate superfight with the potential to cure all ills for both the promotion and fighter. 

Pimblett (20-3), the brash 27-year-old native of Liverpool, England, saw his potential as a future 155-pound title challenger called into question last Saturday at UFC 282 when, in just his fourth appearance inside the Octagon, "The Baddy" struggled to claim a highly disputed decision win over Jared Gordon. 

Even worse, the fight came just days after Pimblett, while interviewing UFC president Dana White on his own podcast, created a regrettable public feud with MMA journalist Ariel Helwani that has left fans questioning Pimblett's character following a meteoric 15-month rise that saw him become one of the promotion's most recognizable brands on a global level. 

So how might one attempt to fix the current predicament in as grandiose and financially pleasing a move as possible? Bear with me for a second on this one. 

How about Pimblett versus Conor McGregor on pay-per-view. Next. And in a European stadium, to boot -- whether that be Croke Park in Dublin or London's Wembley Stadium? 

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On the surface, this might seem like an extreme reaction to a rather tame predicament. Combat sports is one of the most fickle environments where you are only as good as your last performance, which means Pimblett could conceivably repair his current narrative by looking good in his next fight. 

But when it comes to fight promotion, timing typically is everything and the first half of 2023 might be as perfect a time as ever to capitalize on the recent turn of events rather than minimize them. Not to mention, this is already a fight Pimblett has been calling for on the regular and even predicted would break the UFC record for PPV buys. 

The 34-year-old McGregor (22-6) hasn't fought in 17 months after breaking his leg in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier. The former two-division champion has lost three of his last four fights and hasn't recorded a victory at lightweight in six years. 

Not only does McGregor badly need a comeback opponent who is beatable, and brings the potential for "The Notorious" to rehab his damaged brand, booking a fight against the suddenly maligned Pimblett, who many have already been written off as nothing more than a McGregor clone, also gives the UFC a chance to promote its biggest star in history as a "baby face" -- to steal a professional wrestling term -- for the first time since he snapped a two-year layoff in 2020 by demolishing a faded Donald Cerrone.

The key aspect to this from a promotional standpoint is that McGregor's future remains decidedly unknown given age, injury and inactivity. All of the positive accolades he received for how surprisingly humble he acted against Cerrone was washed away in the consecutive defeats against Poirier, which saw McGregor act maniacal throughout. The majority of press the Irish star has received in 2022 has also been largely negative, including performance-enhancing drug accusations from many in the sport. 

Pimblett, who turned pro as a bantamweight, is naturally smaller than McGregor and has yet to show definitively through four UFC fights against sub-elite competition that he's as good as McGregor was, or even still is. 

Yet the real reason this fight is so perfect for Pimblett, right now, is that it's ultimately a no-lose situation. 

Pimblett's flat performance against Gordon, which saw him admit after the fight that he coasted in Round 3 believing he was up on the scorecards, could've just as easily been a loss, which is about the worst-case scenario for the UFC of its "next big thing" (especially from the standpoint of European expansion) being exposed by an unranked and largely unheralded opponent. The fight was also a harsh reminder that Pimblett's incomplete game and defensive holes might not be suited for title contention in such a dangerous division to begin with. 

A loss to McGregor, especially if it were to take place at 170 pounds, would be easily forgiven for Pimblett. And should he aid in making the fight the fun spectacle of trash talk and toe-to-toe trading, there are undoubtedly plenty of moral victories that could come for Pimblett should he lose. 

But what about if Pimblett wins? There simply isn't any other opponent on the roster capable of giving Pimblett the kind of commercial rub that McGregor brings, which means a victory would make the recent drama disappear while also doubling (if not tripling) the size of Pimblett's growing star. 

A victory over McGregor might also allow Pimblett to cut the line in the overall lightweight title picture -- not dissimilar to McGregor's path to the 155-pound title -- without having to defeat high-risk, low-reward opponents along the way to get there. 

At the end of the day, this is a business and few fighters in recent memory have shown the kind of star potential Pimblett has as a potential successor to McGregor to become the promotion's next PPV star. Finding out right away by matching him against McGregor in a potential passing of the torch would be the quickest way to find out, right now, with very little long-term risk outside of Pimblett getting hurt. 

UFC has been on fire in recent years and proved during the pandemic that it could lead the way in keeping its show on the road. But if there has been any criticism in 2022, it was the promotion's lack of crossover PPV offerings that help the sport expand into an even bigger mainstream audience. 

Should the UFC make Jon Jones-Francis Ngannou or Alex Pereira-Israel Adesanya next year, that would be a great start. But both fights would struggle to create as much interest or move as much product as a one-off spectacle like McGregor-Pimblett might do right away. 

Timing is everything and the right time is now.