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Samuel Bark feuding with UFC star Paddy Pimblett, social media beef HEATING UP following KO win
Rising featherweight prospect Samuel ”Sammon Decker” Bark scored his sixth MMA win over the weekend as the Swede racked up his second-straight finish in Cage Warriors, knocking out Manny Akpan in front of the Brit’s hometown crowd at Cage Warriors 146 in Manchester, England.
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The stoppage win had Bark’s teammates labelling him ”the knockout king of Sweden”. Now, it looks like the Muay Thai champion-turned-MMA fighter could have his next bout in sight already as he’s currently beefing with UFC star Paddy ”The Baddy” Pimblett and his undefeated teammate Luke Riley on social media.
What started off as quite a cordial call-out by Pimblett on behalf of Riley escalated rather quickly as Bark responded with fighting words right away. Pimblett was initially asked by a fan what he thought of Bark’s recent performance and responded by saying that while he thought Bark looked good, he simply believes ”Luke finishes him”.
Pimblett also claimed that the team wants to get a fight booked between Riley and Bark in March of next year. From there, it didn’t take long before Bark chimed in and declared his intentions:
”Paddy, you can choose the way I smash your kid. By knee, elbow or any of the other Muay Thai weapons that you say don’t work,” Bark wrote in the comment section of Pimblett’s Instagram post.
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Samuel Bark to Luke Riley: ”I have more knockouts than you and Paddy Pimblett have fights combined”
The tone then changed drastically with Paddy Pimblett claiming Luke Riley ”has better Muay Thai” than Samuel Bark and that he will render him unconscious should they fight, before Riley jumped into the conversation himself to further antagonize Bark labelling him as a ”walking stiff crab” and claiming that he’ll be ”getting snoozed and sent back on the first flight back to Sweden” if they fight.
”You can call me stiff kid but you shouldn’t even talk when I have more knockouts than you and Paddy Pimblett have fights combined,” Bark responded, referencing to his long and decorated Muay Thai career where he won multiple professional championships, including a WBC International title, before switching his focus to MMA where he currently holds a 6-1 record.
As things kept heating up, Bark turned his attention towards Pimblett suggesting he’d ”starch” him too if Pimplett would stop eating ”too much fried chicken” and meet him in the cage at featherweight. Bark also let it be known that he’s currently not under contract with Cage Warriors, indicating that he’d jump on the opportunity to sign with the UFC rather than sticking around on the European scene to face Riley.
In response, Pimblett laughed at the idea stating that Bark ”will never get a chance” to get in a cage with him and that he’ll ”never get to the UFC”.
Some of the back-and-forth between Samuel Bark, Paddy Pimblett and Luke Riley from the comments section on Instagram.
Samuel Bark is currently the most active MMA fighter in Sweden, credits Muay Thai-influenced mentality
Although it would be pretty much impossible for Paddy Pimblett to move down from lightweight and return to featherweight at this point, not to mention that a fight with Samuel Bark would make no sense whatsoever for the Liverpudlian UFC star in this stage of his career, there is something to be said about Bark’s chances of getting into the UFC as well as the suggested March timeframe for the proposed fight against Riley.
See, Bark is currently the most active professional MMA fighter in Sweden. In just over a year, he’s fought seven times and won every fight except from a split-decision loss back in May. Since the start of his MMA journey, Bark has made it clear that his only mission at this time is to get into the UFC as soon as possible by taking on all comers and fighting as often as he used to do in his Muay Thai days.
”MMA fighters are not very active in general, not compared to Muay Thai fighters. I mean, the more bouts you go, the more you develop as a fighter. It gives you experience,” Samuel Bark previously told Frontkick when asked why he fights so frequently in a recent interview.
For all we know, Bark might as well have had one or two more fights before March and could very well be on his way to the UFC by then.
Samuel ”Sammon Decker” Bark. Photo by Stefan Romare/Frontkick.online
”My only focus right now is to do anything in my power to get into the UFC and show everyone that I belong at the world stage”
Actually, according to an article by Swedish MMA website MMA-nytt from July, Samuel Bark is already on the UFC’s radar. Citing an anonymous insider source claiming to have been in contact with UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby regarding Bark, the report states that the promotion has shown interest in either signing the Swede or bringing him into the next season of Dana White’s Contender Series. While we haven’t been able to verify the details of that particular report, a UFC offer certainly wouldn’t come as a surprise for anyone who’s been following Bark’s career up to this point.
Before his win at Cage Warriors 146, Bark stopped Tobias Harila – one of Sweden’s biggest prospect who was widely believed to be on the brink of signing with the UFC at the time. Now, considering recent rumours that the UFC is looking to get back to Sweden soon, Bark would likely be their go-to should they need a game featherweight to step up on any notice for that potential fight card.
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”My only focus right now is to do anything in my power to get into the UFC and show everyone that I belong at the world stage,” Samuel Bark said when asked for a comment regarding the feud with Pimblett and Riley.
”For me, I couldn’t give two shits if that means I have to knock Paddy’s little boy out cold first or not, I’ve finished much better opponents than him already and I’d school him if we were to fight. I definitely won’t be waiting around for him though, that’s for sure. I’m not going to wait around just because they need several months to prepare to fight me. As I’ve said already, I’m looking to stay active and I’m currently a free agent so who knows where I’ll be by the time he’s ready? All I know is that I was a champion in Muay Thai and I will be a champion in the UFC as well. Watch me.”
As of this moment, a bout between Samuel Bark and Luke Riley in March is certainly an intriguing proposal although Bark understandably want to keep his options open. Riley also competed on this past weekend’s Cage Warriors card and is currently 5-0 as a pro with five TKO finishes. With the social media feud already heating up, this could very well turn into a grudge match with bragging rights and a whole lot more at stake.
Samuel ”Sammon Decker” Bark. Photo by Stefan Romare/Frontkick.online
