The British MMA fighter will take on Justin Gaethje for the Interim UFC Lightweight Championship on Saturday (24.01.26) and explained how he relishes silencing those who have doubted him along the way.
Speaking on Men's Health UK's new Built For Life podcast, Pimblett said: "I'm still proving people wrong, but I love that, I want to keep doing that. I don't think I'd be as good if I didn't have to prove people wrong. And I've been doing it since I was a kid. They started saying when I was 15, people told me I'd never fight. And then I had my first fight at 16 and beat someone who was 24.
"And I said, when I won that, when I fight that I'm going to be a UFC world champion… the whole way through my career, amateur, pro. I've been proving people wrong and it just pushes me on and I'm going to carry on doing it."
'The Baddy' explained that he is "calm" ahead of the big fight but has been planning out methods of beating Gaethje in his mind.
The Liverpool fighter said: "I’m always calm, but it’s when you go to bed, you’re lying in bed thinking about all the different ways that you’re going to beat this person. Lying in bed and having all the different images in my head, ground-and-pound, spinning head kick, choking him, just lying there having so many different options in my head…Day to day you just get on with your life."
Pimblett is known for his confidence in the UFC cage but admits that he has struggled with his mental health in the past - to the extent that he was grateful for therapy.
He told hosts Ben Shephard and Andrew Tracey: "I've had some bad times mentally in my head where people still thought I was very tough, but then I've had to go and speak to someone. I had to go and get proper therapy a couple of years ago in 2018, 2019, I had to go sit down and actually speak to a therapist at James' Place. And I always say, without that, I don't know if I'd still be here."
The full episode of Men's Health UK's new Built for Life podcast is available on all major podcast platforms and at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8uBx6PxfWOjxwzI8c6JTeVJim3zbsCoh
