English UFC featherweight Luke Riley has found himself in quite an extraordinary scenario for his next fight.
The 27-year-old isn’t just competing in America for the first time on a card headlined by Conor McGregor’s return against Max Holloway.
He’s also relishing the opportunity to share a spot on the UFC 329 card alongside his good friend and teammate Paddy Pimblett, who faces Benoit Saint Denis in the co-main event.
The marrying of all three will no doubt put an invisible weight on Riley’s shoulders, but the Liverpool man is craving that ultimate fear factor to triumph once again in what will be his third UFC appearance.
Last time out in March at UFC London, Riley made it 13-0 by claiming a unanimous decision over Michael Aswell Jr, having been trusted with the chief support slot so early in his career.
Despite a comfortable victory, with all three judges ruling he won every round, Riley was visibly disappointed with his performance when addressing the media backstage.
‘It was the biggest occasion of my entire life’
“For some reason, out of the 13 fights I’ve had, it was the least nervous I’ve ever felt, which was probably not the best,” Riley told talkSPORT.com in Las Vegas ahead of UFC 329.
He had arrived in Sin City last Tuesday to acclimatise to the time difference and get a few good nights’ sleep.
“I remember being behind the curtain before walking out to the cage, and I was like, ‘Why have I got no feeling?’ You know what I mean?” Riley added.
“No adrenaline was pumping through my body. I wasn’t nervous at all. I don’t know why that was, because it was the biggest occasion of my whole entire life. And I think that showed in my performance.
“Look, a lot of people have said, ‘Luke, you’re being harsh on yourself,’ but I say all the time, I know where I’m heading to, and with them type of performances, it’s not going to get me very far.
“I was harsh on myself, maybe a little bit. But I know the level I’m at.”
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He continued: “A win’s a win, at the end of the day. But I’m not going to go home and f****** party and celebrate like I’ve just won the world title. It’s just another stepping stone.
“I feel like Michael Aswell is one of them: a decent, solid opponent, but he’s going to make the fight ugly, and he’s going to sort of bring you down to his level.
“He’s game, tough as f***, but he’s not very technical. If you’ve not fought before, you won’t understand, but sometimes when you fight these technically lower-level people, you come down to their level, and you’re not used to fighting people who fight off the book.
“In Qatar, for my UFC debut, I was nervous as f***, and you see how that went.
“Then, for some reason the London card, like I’ve just said, you’d think being the biggest occasion of my life, co-main event in my second fight, I’d be in the back shaking, but no.
“It probably felt a bit too normal that one, which is not the best.”
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Pimblett knows my trajectory, says Riley
Riley faces Hawaiian Kai Kamaka III on the preliminary card of UFC 329.
Kamaka has been in and out of the UFC over the last six years, but has doubled Riley’s professional outings since his introduction to the game 14 years ago.
Riley understands the 31-year-old is ‘experienced, a veteran of the game, and definitely a step up,’ but knows the potential he has and certainly doesn’t need to be told.
“I know where I’ve been heading from the very start of my career, and so does Paddy,” Riley added, speaking about any words of wisdom from his teammate.
After all, Pimblett headlined the UFC’s first show of 2026 in the same T-Mobile Arena Riley will fight in on Saturday night.
“We have that mutual bond. Outside of fighting, we’re close mates,” he concluded.
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“So we have that mutual, he understands me, I understand him. Sometimes not much needs to be said, he knows that I know what to expect.
“You speak to Paddy, you see him from the beginning; he knew where I was heading to.”
