Paddy Pimblett reveals emotional speech from Molly McCann as pair cry together in new UFC London retirement footage

03/30/2025 12:37 AM

Paddy Pimblett has let fans in on the emotional speech Molly McCann gave him that left him in tears last weekend.

‘The Baddy’ was cageside to watch his long-time teammate and best friend McCann’s latest octagon defeat which prompted her to hang up the gloves. He was visibly emotional in public after the fact, but saved most of his tears for a private backstage meeting.

McCann let Pimblett into her changing room following the fight, where she thanked him and their team for bringing her career to new levels. The pair have been close since their Cage Warriors days when they both won gold before taking on the UFC together.

• Who is Paddy Pimblett?Get to know the 'baddy' of MMA who is making his presence felt in UFC

Paddy Pimblett shares emotional post-fight speech from Molly McCann

It’s well known that Paddy Pimblett and Molly McCann were both visibly emotional last Saturday after the UFC London fight didn’t go their way. However, in a new vlog, the Scouse fighter has shown exactly what happened behind the scenes which led to even more tears.

“It’s just time for me now, lad,” she told an upset Pimblett as they made their way backstage where she gave her entire team a speech. “The last seven or eight years you have changed my life, even yourself Pad your career’s propelled mine to different astro levels.

“I’m really proud of the human that I am now because yous have raised me as the men in my life that I never had. You’ve given me skills and experiences that people can only dream of.”

She revealed that the true reason for her deciding to retire was more to do with the difficulty of training, particularly if it was no longer getting her results. “I don’t know if it’s my age or what,” she continued. “But the camps are too hard on me to not get the wins so I’m sorry it’s disappointing you or the team.”

The footage also showed the pair hugging as McCann told Pimblett “it’s just a shame we won’t get to fight together again, lad,” which sent them both into tears.

Molly McCann posted heart-wrenching retirement message on Instagram

It appeared that McCann’s decision to retire in the octagon with Michael Bisping was made spur of the moment, and as such she didn’t seem to have a big post planned. She had just days prior ruled out retirement, but seemed content with her career in a post-fight message on Instagram.

Next Generation head coach Paul Rimmer alongside Adam Ventre and Ellis Hampson are key figures in her career, which was one of the most notable in WMMA over the past few years. And she paid tribute to the team in her first post after the announcement.

"I'll do the official retirement post in a few days," McCann wrote on Instagram. "But I'd be no one without the help of these men right here, took me to the moon and back, carried me through the highest highs and the lowest lows.

“NEXT GENERATION LIVERPOOL THANK YOU! MY CITY MY PEOPLE MY HEART, I OWE IT ALL TO THIS PLACE XX"