Paddy Pimblett 'no doubt' still one of the best, but what next after defeat to Justin Gaethje?

Paddy Pimblett might have lost his interim title bout with Justin Gaethje but UFC boss Dana White still sees him as one of the lightweight division's elite fighters.

"No doubt about it," White said, speaking after Pimblett's unanimous decision reverse.

"He obviously took some big shots from a guy who knocks everybody out," White noted. "He showed he is tough, he is durable, especially against Gaethje and you're eating those punches from him."

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He does though think that Pimblett could have had more success against Gaethje.

"I don't think that his gameplan was the greatest," White said. "When it starts to not work at some point you've got to say: 'You know what, it's the third round, I've got two rounds left, I might want to try and take him down and submit him here.'"

He does however see plenty more to come from the exciting Liverpudlian.

"You don't ever want to see guys take too much punishment but I don't know if tonight affected Paddy's longevity in his career at all. He showed tonight that he's tough, he's durable and he can take a punch. He can take a lot of punches actually," White said.

Winning the Interim strap puts Gaehtje on collision course with Ilia Topuria, the full champion.

But there's a host of top-level fighters Pimblett could go straight back in with.

No 1-ranked contender Arman Tsarukyan, who resented Pimblett getting the Interim title shot ahead of him, has already thrown down the gauntlet.

"That's what happens when you're gifted opportunities and pushed up the rankings artificially, a completely undeserved title shot for Paddy," Tsarukyan wrote on social media.

"Congratulations to Justin. He showed real heart, and unlike others he'll step up and take the fight with me. Respect."

That bad blood between Pimblett and Tsarukyan would make that potential fight a compelling event. But it would be a fiercely difficult return for the Briton.

There are though other star names for Pimblett in the upper echelons of the division. Charles Oliveira and Max Holloway are ranked No 2 and No 3 respectively. They are booked to fight each other in March. With Pimblett getting adequate time to recover, the Holloway-Oliveira winner could be the ideal comeback fight for him.