In front of his raucous home fans in England, Pimblett (19-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) struggled for most of the first round against Jordan Leavitt (10-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC).
But he came on strong late in the first round, then in the second, hurting Leavitt with a knee before he sank in a rear-naked choke to end the fight.
Afterwards, he said he learned of the suicide of a friend just hours before the weigh-ins for UFC Fight Night 208. That's not me.
The lightweight bout was part of the UFC Fight Night 208 main card at The O2 in London.
The finish came at the 2:46 mark of the middle frame.
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 208 results include:
- Paddy Pimblett def. Jordan Leavitt via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 2:46
- Nikita Krylov def. Alexander Gustafsson knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:07
- Molly McCann def. Hannah Goldy via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:52
- Volkan Oezdemir def. Paul Craig via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Ludovit Klein def. Mason Jones via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Marc Diakiese def. Damir Hadzovic via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
- Nathaniel Wood def. Charles Rosa via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
- Jonathan Pearce def. Makwan Amirkhani via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:10
- Muhammad Mokaev def. Charles Johnson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Jai Herbert def. Kyle Nelson via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Victoria Leonardo def. Mandy Bohm via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Nicolas Dalby def. Claudio Silva via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27)
