UFC fighter Paddy Pimblett has made quite a lot of noise after his debut in the UFC. He not only had a perfect start, but he has also created a lot of excitement among the masses. This includes NBA legend, Shaquille O’Neal.

It turns out UFC’s rising prospect had left the NBA star’s message unread for months. As reported by ‘Talksport’, The Baddy received messages from many famous people after he won his UFC debut through a T/KO. O’Neal was one of the people who reached out.

Pimblett said (h/t Talksport), “The other day I actually went in my message requests and changed my requests to top requests and I had some mad people in there. Like Big Shaq [Shaquille O’Neal].”

“I’d left Big Shaq unread for four months, I felt terrible! Lweis Capaldi, all basketballers and that YouTuber, know what I mean? I had a message off Logan Paul.”

Paul reportedly approached Pimblett with a business opportunity. However, The Baddy turned it down.

“So when I went through my requests I was like ‘wow, what’s going on here!’ People have said to me ‘what’s it like being a celebrity’ and I’m no celebrity. I’m just Paddy, lad.”

READ MORE- Who Is Paddy Pimblett?- All You Need to Know About the UFC Debutant

The former Cage Warriors champion already has another upcoming fight against Jordan Leavitt inside O2 Arena in London, England, on July 23.

Shaquille O’Neal and the UFC

While O’Neal is an NBA legend, he is quite a famous name among UFC fans too. In fact, he had even given credit to MMA for his success in NBA. As per ‘ESPN‘, practicing basketball wasn’t enough for him. But when he started training in MMA, he achieved his best shape. This was back in 2000.

Watch this story: 3 Times 395 Pound NBA Giant Shaquille ONeal Scared The Life Out Of Fans By Diving Head First Into The Crowd

In addition to this, O’Neal even talked about his favorite UFC fighter. He loves Nate Diaz’s style because of how similar it is to his. O’Neal loves Diaz’s laid-back attitude and his realness.

What do you think about O’Neal crediting MMA for his NBA success? Let us know in the comments below.