Paddy Pimblett rebounded from his brutal loss to Justin Gaethje earlier this year in thrilling fashion, defeating Benoit Saint-Denis in the co-main event at the UFC 329 card which took place on Saturday, the 11th of July from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Pimblett is one of the sport’s biggest stars thanks to his raucous fan-base, extraordinary ring-walks, and for the TV-friendly fighting style he exhibits, which has generated many memorable encounters in Cage Warriors and UFC, win or lose.

Pimblett has been competing at the highest echelons in the UFC’s lightweight division for years now, and despite his recent loss, did not take a backward step by taking on Saint Denis, who took four wins on the spin to the Octagon, including finishes over Mauricio Ruffy, Beneil Dariush, and Dan Hooker.

But, over the weekend, Pimblett appeared unfazed at his opponent’s accolades and scored a first-round submission.

Paddy Pimblett Sleeps Benoit Saint Denis

In three defeats as a pro MMA fighter to date, Saint Denis had never been submitted, losing only to a decision (Elizeu Zeliskis dos Santos) and knockouts (Dustin Poirier and Renato Moicano). But even in those finishes, nobody stopped him in as lightning quick fashion as Pimblett.

In footage you can see below, it’s clear Pimblett attacks in rapid fashion, secures a guillotine on Saint Denis, locks the submission within 30 seconds around the neck, and sends the Frencman to sleep. The referee, Marc Goddard, waved the fight off when he grabbed ahold of Saint Denis’s arm, held it high, and let go. And when it dropped immediately to the canvas, Goddard knew he was out cold. It was all over.

Watch Pimblett put Saint Denis to sleep right here:

Here is another look:

Victory advanced Pimblett’s pro MMA record to 24 wins (seven knockouts and 11 submissions) against four defeats, and crucially sees him rebound instantly after the loss to Gaethje.

Alf-Inge Haaland has taken aim at FIFA officials after Norway were denied by some controversial refereeing calls as England edged Norway 2-1 in their World Cup quarter-final.

The former defender’s frustration boiled over on a night when the margins, and the big calls, all seemed to fall in England’s favour. At the heart of it was Jude Bellingham, whose brace carried Thomas Tuchel‘s side through to a second semi-final in three tournaments.

Additionally, for Norway, having had a goal ruled out by VAR, they had another axe to grind following England’s equaliser. Many argued it should never have stood with replays appearing to show the ball striking a camera cable in the build-up — contact that would ordinarily bring play to a halt.

It was a tense, finely balanced affair between two well-matched sides, settled less by a flood of chances than by a handful of pivotal moments — but one that has left a bad taste in Haaland’s mouth. Astonishingly, the match produced just one yellow card, yet it hinged on two major VAR decisions and an offside goal chalked off from Harry Kane.

Haaland’s Dad Calls Out Referee

For Norway, the sense of grievance was real: their team effort matched England for long stretches, but they came away with nothing despite their spirited effort. Following the game, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano’s account posted after Bellingham’s record-breaking display, signing off with ‘Hey Jude’.

That grievance found its sharpest expression from Alfie Haaland himself, who responded to Romano’s tribute to Bellingham — “Brace against Norway. Six goals in six World Cup games. Always there when England needed the most. Hey, Jude.” — with a pointed, five-word jab of his own:

In reality, it was a frustrating evening for Haaland and Norway, whilst England themselves weren’t overly impressive, with Tuchel later commending the mentality of his players but criticising their overall quality.

Haaland’s Lack of Impact in England Win

England’s Jude Bellingham celebrates scoring vs Norway via Reuters/Sam Navarro

Haaland was surprisingly quiet during the quarter-final tie, managing just one shot on target and completing just five passes out of the 13 he attempted, and his most notable moment was his foul on Elliot Anderson that denied a chance for his team to take the lead in the second half.

Norway originally took the lead through Benfica star Andreas Schjelderup in the first half, with a powerful cross/shot soaring past Jordan Pickford in a moment that sparked the game into life.

Bellingham hit back on the stroke of halftime, powering his way into the penalty area before firing a brilliant left-footed strike past Orjan Nyland to draw Thomas Tuchel‘s side level. Haaland’s foul on Anderson curtailed Torbjorn Heggem’s celebrations 10 minutes after halftime, when it looked as though Norway had gone 2-1 up, as the two sides then headed into extra time.

England struck quickly through Bellingham, who was on hand to tap in Nyland’s parry, ensuring he is the first player to score back-to-back braces in the knockout stage since Diego Maradona, and the youngest ever to do so after Pele.

Jude Bellingham dismissed Thomas Tuchel‘s post-match criticisms of England‘s performance despite their 2-1 victory over Norway in the World Cup quarter-finals.

England reached a second semi-final in three tournaments, as Bellingham’s brace was enough to edge out a spirited Norway side, who originally took the lead.

Far from England’s best performance, it drew a passionate speech of constructive criticism from Tuchel, who hailed his side’s mentality but questioned their quality.

Bellingham hit back, calling the match “tough” as the Three Lions now await the winner of the final quarter-final tie between Argentina and Switzerland.

Tuchel’s Passionate Criticism

Paul Childs via Reuters

“We made life very difficult for ourselves,” Tuchel began. “The result is fantastic, it’s amazing, but we are not happy with the performance.” When pushed for more details, the German simply responded with, ​​​​​​​“In every sense. Sloppy, a lot of technical mistakes, not fast enough: we were lucky today.”

When asked if it was a mentality issue, Tuchel quickly hit back at ITV’s Gabriel Clarke, passionately hailing his players, stating that mentality is what drove the players to success:

Speaking on Bellingham, who netted another brace after his efforts against Mexico, he called the Real Madrid star “world-class” and claimed he produces “every single match”.

​​​​​​​Bellingham’s Bold Response

When the midfielder was told his manager was not happy with the team’s performance, Bellingham’s reply was rather eye-catching. He bluntly said:

“It’s difficult out there. A tough shift,” he added. “Character, perseverance, when things weren’t working we found a way to win a game. We gave it everything we’ve got. So proud of this team.”

Before Bellingham’s brace, a first-half strike from Andreas Schjelderup sparked the game into life, as the Benfica attacker fired an effort that toed the line between cross and shot. Regardless, it shocked England into life, who quickly hit back on the edge of halftime.

Bellingham received a smart ball from Anthony Gordon before carrying it into the box and firing low and hard past Ørjan Nyland to bring his side level. However, England had to be saved by VAR in the early knockings of the second half as Torbjorn Heggem’s goal was ruled out following a foul by Erling Haaland on Elliot Anderson.

The 23-year-old midfielder grabbed his second to settle the tie early into extra-time, netting his sixth in this tournament format, which is more than Zinedine Zidane managed across his World Cup career.