Paddy Pimblett’s coach nearly pulled him from UFC 304 due to depression, anxiety issues

UFC lightweight Paddy Pimblett overcame a mountain of hurdles to make it to Manchester for his upcoming pay-per-view showcase.

Pimblett is scheduled to face Bobby Green on the UFC 304 main card this Saturday in Manchester. He returns to the Octagon after a seven-month hiatus, stemming from a win over Tony Ferguson at UFC 296.

Pimblett remains unbeaten in his UFC tenure, despite a controversial victory over Jared Gordon at UFC 282. He’s won seven consecutive fights and is one of the UK’s brightest MMA talents.

Pimblett, in addition to his Octagon success, has used his platform to speak about mental health and the stigma surrounding the topic. Ahead of UFC 304, he recently admitted that his depression/anxiety issues nearly forced him off the card.

Paddy Pimblett admits UFC 304 prep was “Worst camp of my life”

In a recent interview with Sky Sports, Pimblett discussed the severity of his recent mental health struggles.

“It’s mad because five weeks ago, I was thinking ‘Oh my god, this is the worst camp of my life, what’s going on here?’,” Pimblett said. “Just a few things went wrong…a couple of weeks ago, a few things personally were getting me down. Kicked into gear at the right time, everything fell into place and no one could beat me on Saturday…

“About five or six weeks ago, my coach was thinking about pulling me out. Mentally, I just wasn’t there…up until like two or three weeks ago. I don’t know [how I turned it around], I have that attitude and that positivity where I can turn it around. You know how confident I am, so when my coach was thinking about pulling me out I went ‘No, no chance’.”

Pimblett remains on track to weigh in on Friday and fight Green at Saturday’s event.

Pimblett’s admissions show that athletes at the highest level deal with their demons outside of their disciplines. Ahead of arguably the biggest fight of his career, Pimblett has passed a big test in preparation for UFC 304.