Paddy Pimblett’s online war of words with unbeaten Irish talent Dylan Tuke has entertained a lot of fans over the last few months.
This weekend Tuke will take on the outspoken Liverpudlian’s Next Generation teammate Adam Ventre in his hometown in the main event of Shinobi FC 8, but ‘The Nuke’ is adamant that Pimblett hasn’t given him any extra exposure in the lead up to the contest.
“Everyone would’ve known who I was anyway,” declared the surging Dubliner.
“Paddy hasn’t got me any publicity if anything I’ve made people aware of who he is with all this. I haven’t really heard anything he’s said outside of our back and forth, and I don’t really care what he’s said. I grew up with twelve or thirteen cousins, all we did was slag each other. It’s just banter.
“The only thing he said to me was that I was ugly and I’m absolutely gorgeous so I’m not going to pay much attention to that,” he laughed.
“At the end of the day, if the fight game was a modelling agency then my looks would matter. These guys never talk about how bad I am at fighting. They know they can’t say anything about that. The results speak for themselves.”
While Pimblett and Tuke have been exchanging words, Ventre has stayed out of the war of words. For Tuke, his opponent’s silence speaks volumes.
“I think Adam not talking is a sign of weakness. He’s letting another man talk for him. I don’t understand that. Ventre hasn’t said anything. He hasn’t opened his mouth. I’ve been pretty vocal about saying what I want to do, but he has to get into that cage with me. That requires some deeper thought and I’m sure it’s keeping him up at night.”
Pimblett claimed that Tuke would be in for a frosty reception at the Olympia on Saturday night. Yet, the young SBG featherweight believes the whole crowd will be cheering for him by the end of the contest.
He said: “All of the fans in Liverpool are going to cheering for me by the end of the fight. There are a lot of Irish people in Liverpool and as far as I’m concerned, I’m going out to give them a show.
“Everyone is going to be surprised when they see the reception I get over there. There will be people that have seen my fights on YouTube, and they’re going to want to see me over there.
“I really can’t see it putting any more pressure on me than the BAMMA shows in Dublin did. There were thousands of screaming fans and I got one of the loudest receptions of the night. I’ve had great performances there. If anything, with fewer people in Liverpool, I’m expecting it to be even easier to put on a big performance.”
Many fans are expecting some antics between the two camps ahead of the clash, but Tuke claims he isn’t fazed by the thoughts of such shenanigans before the fight:
“I think I’m in all of their heads, to be honest. They seem angry. They’re getting upset. Meanwhile, I’m sitting here watching ‘Paw Patrol’ with little sister, Layla. They can do whatever they want before the fight, it doesn’t bother me.”
Having won all of his fights by submission, the main threat that Ventre poses seems to be in the grappling realms. Tuke claims that he has been given stellar references from UFC fighters about his takedown defence, and even if the fight does hit the ground, he’s confident that he can either submit Ventre or get back to his feet.
“My ego is making me want to roll around a bit with him, but fuck that! I know he wants it to get to the ground. He’ll be confident if it hits the ground. Working him on the feet would be perfect for me. That’s my game.
“Taking me down is going to be a big challenge. There are a lot of good wrestlers in the gym. I’ve got guys like Makwan Amirkhani to wrestle with and he would tell you that it’s hard to take me down. Even Gunnar Nelson has praised my takedown defence.
“Even if he manages to get me down I’m confident enough in my abilities that I think I’ll be able to submit him. I’ll definitely be able to sweep him or get back to my feet anyway.”
Despite his original opponent for BAMMA 26 at the 3 Arena on September 10, Adam Jahovic, pulling out of their bout, Tuke has promised that he will be on the card.
“I promise I’ll be on that BAMMA card. For the last two BAMMA cards in Dublin, I was the most talked about fighter after the events. I got the biggest response and I was the most impressive. BAMMA want me on that card. On the last card, I was third on the prelims. For this show, I’m sure they’ll want me on that main card. I’ll welcome anything.”
When asked for a prediction about the upcoming scrap between Tuke and Ventre, Pimblett claimed that the Dubliner would “wilt” as the fight wore on. Having studied Ventre ahead of their meeting, Tuke is confident that his opponent will run out of gas before he will.
“It’s not my fault I’m a finisher. I always want to put on a show. I’m not into hugging people. If you go the full 15 minutes with another man I think it should count as a draw. If it was a fair go on the street and you both just walk away after 15 minutes that would be a draw in my eyes.
“I’m not going to wilt. I never get tired. I go all day. I’ve seen Ventre’s fights. I do that shit now that I’m pro. I never used to look at any of my opponents.
“To be honest, I could only look at two or three minutes of his fights because I got bored. I’ve seen him get tired. If they think I’m going to wilt they’re in for another thing.”
Finally, Tuke insisted that he would finish Ventre in the first round of their clash.
“I don’t see Ais and Luka having to come in and give me water between rounds, put it that way. I envision a first round win again. I’m not going to tell you the shot that I’m going to finish him with, but I definitely see a first round win. I reckon it’ll be in the third or fourth minute.”
@PetesyCarroll
Photo: BAMMA/Dave Fogarty
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