Paddy Pimblett defeats Benoît Saint Denis by Submission
Pimblett vs Saint Denis — Lightweight · UFC 329
What happened
The result, the defining moments, and what the verdict means.
Pimblett rolled through Saint Denis' first takedown attempt and immediately hunted the front headlock.
He transitioned to a Peruvian necktie as Saint Denis tried to posture out.
Saint Denis lost consciousness in the hold; the technical submission was stopped at 0:52.
- Secondary fallback play-by-play reportSherdog · UFC 329 play-by-play
Watch
More from this fight.
More videos · 10 clips
Signature moments
Signature moments
Who Called It?
How the analysts' picks held up once the cage door closed.
Analyst picks: DFS By The Numbers called it; AJ perfect call; Mike Finch perfect call; The MMA Guru called it; Bedtime MMA perfect call; We Want Picks called it; Demetrious Johnson called it; Lucas Tracy missed; TheWeasle missed; HopperoMMA missed.
7 of 10 nailed it · 3 nailed the finish ★.
The experts above are a lens, not credentials we conferred — analyst, fighter or betting desk.
Full analyst picks ↓
DFS By The Numbers Betting deskAnalyst called 60 of 88 DFS By The Numbers: predicted Pimblett · Sub · R2. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Hit.
Backs Pimblett as the more durable and more opportunistic finisher in chaotic exchanges. He expects Saint Denis to leave necks or arms exposed while forcing grappling scrambles, giving Pimblett a second-round submission opening.
Track record: winner called in 60 of 88 resolved picks, 23 a perfect call.
AJ Betting deskAnalyst called 52 of 71 AJ: predicted Pimblett · Sub. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Perfect call.
Takes Pimblett to weather Saint Denis' early chaos and punish mistakes once grappling scrambles open. He expects Pimblett's back-taking and submission game to decide it later.
“I'm going Patty Pima by submission here.”
Track record: winner called in 52 of 71 resolved picks, 25 a perfect call.
Mike Finch Betting deskAnalyst called 23 of 36 Mike Finch: predicted Pimblett · Sub. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Perfect call.
Also backs Pimblett as the live underdog. He thinks Saint Denis' pressure can create the exact scrambles where Pimblett's dangerous guard and back attacks become decisive.
“Patty Pimblet via submission.”
Track record: winner called in 23 of 36 resolved picks, 9 a perfect call.
The MMA Guru Analyst called 44 of 65 The MMA Guru: predicted Pimblett · Sub · R2. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Hit.
Backs Pimblett despite acknowledging Saint Denis' pressure and early danger. His final read is that Pimblett hurts Saint Denis on the feet first, then uses the scramble or knockdown sequence to finish by second-round submission.
“Submission second round after hurting him on the feet.”
Track record: winner called in 44 of 65 resolved picks, 16 a perfect call.
Bedtime MMA Analyst called 67 of 99 Bedtime MMA: predicted Pimblett · Sub. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Perfect call.
Picks Paddy Pimblett by submission while admitting Saint Denis' pressure and clinch work are dangerous early. His argument is that Saint Denis' takedown entries play into Pimblett's defensive grappling, reversals and submission threats, and that Pimblett can weather the early storm before finishing in a scramble.
“I'm picking Paddy Pimblett by submission.”
Track record: winner called in 67 of 99 resolved picks, 28 a perfect call.
We Want Picks Betting desk called 55 of 87 We Want Picks: predicted Pimblett · to win. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Hit.
Both hosts say they originally understood the Benoit Saint Denis wrestling case, but flipped toward Paddy Pimblett after rewatching recent tape and weighing durability. They still call the grappling dangerous if BSD gets top position, but pick Paddy as the tougher, more damaging side.
- They are explicit that this is a pick, not a confident bet.
“I'm taking Patty.”
Track record: winner called in 55 of 87 resolved picks.
Demetrious Johnson AnalystFighter called 9 of 15 Demetrious Johnson: predicted Pimblett · to win. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Hit.
Thinks both fighters thrive in chaotic scrambles, which gives Saint Denis a real path if he can set a pace Pimblett cannot match. His final read is still Pimblett, trusting the lessons from the Gaethje loss and Pimblett's ability to do enough in the chaos.
Track record: winner called in 9 of 15 resolved picks.
Lucas Tracy Analyst called 21 of 32 Lucas Tracy: predicted Saint Denis · KO/TKO. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Miss.
After weighing Pimblett's range work and submission danger, he lands on Saint Denis' clinch pace, judo, and finishing style. He expects the fight to stay in high-pressure exchanges and end with Saint Denis doing damage from the clinch.
“I'm going to pick him to win this fight. I'm going to go with a finish.”
Track record: winner called in 21 of 32 resolved picks, 8 a perfect call.
TheWeasle Analyst called 34 of 48 TheWeasle: predicted Saint Denis · Decision. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Miss.
Frames Saint Denis as the fighter more likely to force the pressure and damage in a wild, size-for-size lightweight clash. He gives Pimblett the cardio edge and a possible late rally, but expects Saint Denis to win the first two rounds and take a decision.
Track record: winner called in 34 of 48 resolved picks, 14 a perfect call.
HopperoMMA Analyst called 41 of 65 HopperoMMA: predicted Saint Denis · Decision. Actual Pimblett · Sub R1. Result: Miss.
Calls it a close, low-confidence fight but picks Benoit Saint Denis for having more ways to win. He expects Saint Denis to punish Paddy Pimblett's striking defense, mix in his own grappling and do enough across three rounds.
Track record: winner called in 41 of 65 resolved picks, 15 a perfect call.
Archive Pre-fight material — kept for transparency.
- 5.49 5.62
- 43% 42%
- 3.89 4.09
- 44% 72%
- 75% 100%
- 23-4-0
- Record
- 17-3-0
- 4-1 last 5
- Recent formRecent formWin–loss record over the fighter’s last five bouts, newest first, as carried in their UFC/FightMetric career stats.
- 4-1 last 5
- Orthodox
- StanceStanceWhich side a fighter leads from — a striking term, not a religious one. Orthodox: right-handed, left foot and hand forward (the common default). Southpaw: the mirror image, right side forward (usually a left-hander). Switch: changes between the two during a fight.
- Southpaw
- 10:56
- Avg. fight timeAvg. timeAverage fight timeThe mean length of the fighter’s bouts (minutes:seconds) — a rough read on whether they tend to finish early or go the distance. From UFC/FightMetric.
- 7:10
- England
- Nationality
- France
- Next Generation MMA · Liverpool
- Team
- Venum Training Camp · Paris
Career stats per UFC.com; recent form is each fighter's last five bouts. Numbers reflect records coming into fight night. Bars compare each stat on a fixed scale; the “Edge” marker flags the leading corner where the gap is meaningful. The snapshot plots five career rates — output, striking defense, durability (strikes absorbed, inverted), takedown defense and finish rate — each normalised on its own scale.
Pre-fight analysis — how we saw it going in
Case for Pimblett
The main Paddy Pimblett question at UFC 329 is whether the Justin Gaethje loss exposed a ceiling or simply interrupted his climb. The best case for Pimblett is still the same one that built his run: high output, opportunistic submission chains and the willingness to keep scrambling until the other man accepts a messy fight. Ten of his 23 wins are by submission, and even in the Gaethje loss he proved he could survive hard damage and keep working for five rounds. If Pimblett can turn Saint Denis into a reactive wrestler instead of a front-foot finisher, this becomes the kind of long, ugly fight where his pace and scramble confidence matter most.
Case for Saint Denis
The Benoit Saint Denis case is more direct: force a real top-contender pace on Pimblett before Pimblett can settle into a rhythm. Saint Denis has 17 wins and all 17 are finishes, with the recent four-fight streak showing both sides of the threat: the 16-second knockout of Beneil Dariush and the familiar submission-pressure game that drowned Maurício Ruffy and Kyle Prepolec. This page should answer a simple search-intent question clearly: is Pimblett ready for a finisher who can wrestle and hurt him? Saint Denis is the sharper version of that test because he pressures early, accepts chaos and rarely lets opponents coast through neutral minutes.
What We Were Watching For
- Pimblett's first few defensive scrambles if Saint Denis gets on top early; that is where the matchup shifts from theory to survival.
- Whether Pimblett can make Saint Denis fight minute after minute instead of sequence to sequence; Saint Denis has never won by decision and usually prefers momentum over management.
- How much the Gaethje loss changed Pimblett's risk appetite; a calmer version helps him here, a brawl-first version helps Saint Denis.
- Which grappler wins the second exchange, not the first; both can attack in transitions, so the reset after a stuffed shot or half-finished takedown matters most.
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