Tag Archives: khabib

Posted on 11/08/2019

By: Hans Themistode

It’s been quite some time since sure fire first ballot hall of famer Floyd Mayweather Jr has been seen in the ring. However, that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been behind the scenes trying to make things happen.

This is apparently the case according to Abdulmanap, the father of UFC Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

It was long thought that Mayweather would ride off into the sunset following his tenth round stoppage win over another UFC star in Conor McGregor, in 2017. That aforementioned contest reportedly netted Mayweather close to 300 million.

Discussions of the two polarizing figures running back the contest never materialized. Instead, Mayweather seemed content with living the retired life. However, as of late, Mayweather has seemingly been in discussions with his former rival, Manny Pacquiao.

The two settled their long standing feud in the ring back in 2015. Mayweather would win via unanimous decision, although Pacquiao has said on numerous occasions that he was not 100 percent for their contest, citing a torn rotator cuff for his shortcomings in the contest.

A rematch between the two has been in discussions for quite some time now, but Mayweather has seemingly switched his focus to Nurmagomedov.

Thoughts of these two sharing the ring with one another has been teased for several years now. Yet, there was never any real traction. Fast forward to today, and it looks as though the possibility has become as real as ever.

“Floyd, I respect your wish to fight Khabib,” said Abdulmanap via Instagram. “At the moment we have our most crucial moment, when he have to hold the best fight in the history of the UFC.”

The contest in which Abdulmanap is speaking of, is his son’s next opponent Tony Ferguson. It will undoubtedly be one of the biggest contests in the history of the UFC.

“Twelve against 12 in a series of victories (in the UFC) and all the fans are waiting for this fight.”

When Abdulmanap says the number twelve, he is speaking of victories in the UFC octagon. Khabib is undefeated in twelve contests for the UFC, while Ferguson is currently on a twelve fight win streak which stretches back to 2013.

“We’ve been preparing for this fight for more than a year. Five months and the fight with Ferguson should take place.”

Abdulmanap’s wish for his son to first fight Tony Ferguson is understandable. They are both arguably the best Lightweights in the UFC, and a contest between the two would end the debate on who is the best in the world.

Although Abdulmanap wants his son to focus on Ferguson, he would like for Khabib to shift his focus following victory over Ferguson.

Abdulmanap however, has made it clear that he will need some time for his son to get fully prepared, which will include calling upon the help of a respected boxing trainer.

“First of all we will need to do some boxing training and we need a camp – with Lomachenko Sr for half a year. Why not!!!”

A match between Khabib and Floyd would take place in a boxing ring, which leads to the belief that Khabib will suffer the same fate of Conor McGregor. It is truly mind boggling that any UFC fighter truly believes that they can defeat one of the best boxers in the world. Even at the age of 42, Floyd Mayweather possesses the sort of skill, you simply can’t teach in a short amount of time.

With Floyd officially receiving the blessing of Khabibs father to make the contest happen, it looks as though the showdown will take place in 2020.

Posted on 09/08/2019

By: Jesse Donathan

The lightweight unification bout between the champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and interim champion Dustin Poirier went off without a hitch Saturday afternoon, with Nurmagomedov dominating Poirier in route to a third-round rear naked choke submission victory over the American Top Team representative from Coconut Creek, Florida. Nurmagomedov, who captured the title at UFC 223 in April of 2018 against Al Iaquinta before defending the title some six months later against Conor McGregor at UFC 229 has firmly solidified himself as a superstar in one of the sports most exciting divisions.

At lightweight, grappling with Khabib Nurmagomedov is like falling victim to an avalanche to his opponents as Nurmagomedov convincingly shutdown Poirier’s offensive arsenal from start to finish. With the sheer dominance of a tidal wave, Nurmagomedov was all over the now former interim champion like white on rice in the first round of their UFC 242 main event at The Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on ESPN+ PPV.

It was a dominant display of grappling by the Dagestani champion, not just simply the boring, blanket variety of wrestling where one fighter lays on the other like a busted can of biscuits either.

Nurmagomedov outclassed and bullied Poirier on the mat in route to a convincing 10-9 round on my judges score card, looking every bit the undefeated force of nature that he is billed as. In between rounds, a disorganized and unprepared scene unfolded on camera as Poirier’s camp appeared excited in comparison to the calm and collected demeanor of other notable camps in the business of mixed martial arts generalship and strategizing.

By the start of the second round, Poirier already appeared to be winded, the high pace Nurmagomedov is famously known to put on his opponents noticeable in Poirier’s body language. In a testament to what kind of physical condition “The Diamond” is actually in, he would turn up the heat in the offensive department throughout the second round, controlling the stand-up throughout much of the time the two fighters spent on their feet as he chased the elusive Nurmagomedov around the Octagon who appeared to respect the kickboxing ability of Poirier enough to not engage in any kind of reckless manner.

Eventually however, Khabib would push Poirier up against the chain link fence, securing another takedown in route to clearly controlling Dustin on the canvas. Poirier would eventually make his way to his feet several times, only to be pinned against the cage and manhandled back to the mat pretty much at will by the American Kickboxing Academy representative out of San Jose, California by way of Dagestan. The second round was another clear cut 10-9 round for Nurmagomedov who is simply a dominant grappling force in the lightweight division that Poirier struggled to find an answer for.

Within a minute of the third, Nurmagomedov had again attempted to put Poirier up against the chain link fence in hopes of yet another takedown only to be met with a guillotine choke submission hold by Poirier which he threatened Nurmagomedov with for a rather meaningful period of time. Poirier would ultimately abandon the hold altogether as Nurmagomedov immediately moved to take Poirier’s back in what would prove to be a pivotal moment in the fight.

Threatening with a rear naked choke, Nurmagomedov would soften Poirier up with punches before again seizing Poirier’s neck and sinking in the rear naked choke, coaxing the tap from Poirier and bringing an end to the most anticipated fight of the evening at UFC 242. Immediately following his victory, Nurmagomedov would scale the Octagon fence and embrace UFC President Dana White in the crowd in a gesture that seemed to bring a smile to the surprised White’s face.

“Khabib Nurmagomedov admits Dustin Poirier’s guillotine was “close” to putting him away,” writes USA TODAY Sports Mike Bohn in a September 7, 2019 social media recap of UFC 242 on Twitter. As Boxing Insider previously reported, the undisputed UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has a propensity to lead with his head up, leaving his neck exposed as he looks to close the distance and initiate takedowns from a variety of different angles, leaving himself potentially vulnerable for submission in the process. Though Poirier ultimately failed in bringing Nurmagomedov down in the opening moments of the third, it’s a dangerous game Nurmagomedov is playing and he may not fair as well in the future under a different set of circumstances unless he mends this hole in his game up.

A dominating force in the Octagon, its small details about Nurmagomedov’s overall game such as this that have the potential to mean the difference between a perfect professional mixed martial arts career and one married with a hard to swallow blemish on Khabib’s overall record. This detail, likely one of many, was exactly what the Dustin Poirier camp attempted to exploited at UFC 242 and by all accounts he nearly succeeded in doing so at that.

In the UFC post-fight media scrum, the champion Nurmagomedov expressed interest in a charity superfight at lightweight with UFC legend and former two-division champion Georges St. Pierre in Africa, specifically mentioning Congo by name multiple times at the presser. A multiple time defending welterweight champion at 170-pounds not so long ago, St. Pierre came out of retirement in 2017 to capture the UFC middleweight title against the champion Michael Bisping before relinquishing the title not long after.

It was a fight St. Pierre received by in large based off his longtime dominance in the 170-pound welterweight division and his obvious drawing power as one of the most popular fighters in the sport of mixed martial arts today. Where as the layman might mistakenly presume Georges St. Pierre had worked his way through the UFC’s middleweight division in order to have earned the right to have faced Michael Bisping; the actual fact of the matter is that it’s a different era in professional prized fighting today and the conventional hierarchical model has been completely thrown out the window.

If a superfight with Nurmagomedov were to materialize, Georges St. Pierre would be thrust into the driver’s seat of making history as quite possibly the UFC’s first three-division champion. St. Pierre would likely come into the fight with a size, strength and experience advantage against Nurmagomedov as a betting favorite to dethrone the UFC lightweight champion even though, again, St. Pierre will be inserted into a title picture he did not earn through traditional means.

“I want to do something that … at 155, I never did it before,” writes Milan Ordonez of a conversation Georges St. Pierre had with Joe Rogan on the JRE MMA Show in a May 24, 2018 bloodyelbow.com article titled, “Georges St-Pierre on drop to 155: I want the title or to beat a guy that’s on the rise.” St. Pierre would go on to explain that he wants, “The title, or beating a certain guy that’s on the rise. It could be Khabib Nurmagomedov, (or) if there’s another guy that is unbeatable.” Purely conjecture on my end, but perhaps St. Pierre is even jockeying for a 155-pound showdown with Conor McGregor himself as the mystery other guy?

A St. Pierre move to lightweight has been on the table as far back as 2011, with St. Pierre’s coach Firas Zahabi telling Sherdog.com’s TJ De Santis on the “Beatdown” show that from a starting point of 175-pounds, St. Pierre could cut to 155-pounds “easily” according to an October 25, 2011 mmamania.com article title, “Coach prefers Georges St. Pierre cut to 155, not bulk up for middleweight superfight,” by author Jesse Holland.
Unfortunately for St. Pierre, the Khabib Nurmagomedov sweepstakes includes a couple other viable contenders waiting in the wings for their chance to vie for Nurmagomedov’s UFC lightweight throne. “The fifth time might be the charm in the seemingly cursed fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson,” writes author Damon Martin in his September 8, 2019 MMAFighting.com article titled, “Dana White: Tony Ferguson next but if he turns down fight, Khabib vs. Conor McGregor 2 makes sense.”

According to Martin, “After four previous attempts to put the fight together fell apart due to injuries and weight-cutting errors, UFC president Dana White declared Ferguson as next in line to face Nurmagomedov for the lightweight title following Nurmagomedov’s win over Dustin Poirier on Saturday night.”

With the Nurmagomedov lottery including Tony Ferguson, Conor McGregor and Georges St. Pierre, it’s a safe bet the UFC is holding their cards close to their chest as negotiations continue to be on going with all parties involved. For the time being, Ferguson is next in line to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov until he isn’t. “But” with the Nurmagomedov camp talking St. Pierre, the UFC talking Ferguson or maybe Conor McGregor, its likely a matter of dollars and therefore sense as to what the future ultimately holds. While Tony Ferguson is the lightweight divisions rightful number one contender, I won’t hold my breath until that cage door closes behind him that he is Nurmagomedov’s next opponent.

Posted on 09/06/2019

By: Jesse Donathan

On Saturday, September 7, 2019 UFC 242 is slated to go take place at The Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on ESPN + pay-per-view (PPV) with the main event featuring a UFC lightweight unification bout between the UFC Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov (27-0, 8 KOs) and the UFC Lightweight Interim Champion Dustin Poirier (25-5, 12 KOs). This is among the most anticipated main events of the year and one that may have superfight implications on the line with UFC legend Georges St. Pierre according to Nurmagomedov’s manager Ali Abdelaziz.

This is controversial and problematic information for former Interim Champion Tony Ferguson and his legions of fans, many of whom believe “El Cucuy” to be the rightful number one contender and next in line for the UFC lightweight throne. Stripped of his interim title by the UFC back in 2018, Ferguson never actually lost his belt in the Octagon and has been left on the outside looking in ever since.

Though there is some hope for Tony Ferguson fans, with UFC President Dana White claiming he is next in line should he prove to be ready however contradictory the two separate, but credible reports may appear to be in conjunction with one another.

The current Interim Champion Dustin Poirier is a game fighter, not afraid to stand in the pocket and trade with his opponents, he can dish it out just as well as he can take it. Poirier possesses an effective left hand for an orthodox fighter and a devastating leg kick-based attack, both of which we can expect to see this weekend on full display against the Dagestani champion. Poirier trains out of American Top Team (ATT) in Coconut, Florida and has some of the best coach’s in the game today. The results of which are obvious in the Octagon; Dustin Poirier is an outstanding kickboxer who is not to be taken lightly on the feet.

Poirier would be best suited to remain elusive in the cage, floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee in an effort to keep Nurmagomedov from closing the distance where he does his best work. Speed, footwork and avoiding certain key positions in the fight where Nurmagomedov shines are crucial in effectively game planning to defeat the undefeated champion.

“Look, if you can keep your back off the fence, you are very likely to not be taken down by Khabib,” explained ESPN MMA analyst and former UFC middleweight contender Chael Sonnen’s in his September 3, 2019 Bad Guy Inc. YouTube video titled, “INTANGIBLES: Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Dustin Poirier.”

In critiquing the main event fighters ahead of UFC 242, in Sonnen’s view of Nurmagomedov, “Okay, he’s not Georges St. Pierre, where he is going to come across the ring, two steps later hit you with a flash double that you never saw coming and run your ass down. Khabib is a little bit more methodical, he gets his hands and pushes you into the fence. He’s got some tricks, he’s got some step overs, behind the knee’s, ways to pull you off the fence, ways to get you down. “

“And I can tell you as a guy who lived on ground and pound, who trained with Randy Couture, and Randy Couture and Mark Coleman are the two guys who coined the phrase, literally, of ground and pound, who had the best training in the world, Khabib is doing stuff on top that I have never even seen shown. I have never even seen it in competition or practice until I saw Khabib doing it,” explained Sonnen.

That is high praise coming from “The Bad Guy,” who famously beat the breaks off UFC legend Anderson Silva for approximately 23 minutes before succumbing to a come from behind Triangle Armbar submission hold from Silva at 3:10 in the fifth and final championship round that forced Sonnen to tap.

The only fighter in the world to have stepped into the cage with Anderson Silva, Fedor Emelianenko and Jon Jones, three fighters widely considered the best to have ever competed in the sport of mixed martial arts; Sonnen fought a murderer’s row of competition throughout his career that his overall record simply does not accurately do justice in reflecting his true overall skillset and position in the hierarchy of all-time greats. For Sonnen to sing such high praise of Nurmagomedov is an indication of just what kind of uphill battle Poirier faces this weekend in dealing with a fighter nobody thus far has been able to defeat, though Gleison Tibau did give Khabib a run for his money in a widely disputed controversial decision victory that is likely not soon to be forgotten.

If Poirier did not train extensively in takedown defense and dealing with the absolute worse case scenarios on the ground with Nurmagomedov in the lead up to this fight then I would be very surprised, because there is a high probability that is exactly where Poirier is going to find himself come Saturday night, perhaps for a significant amount of time at that.

There are opportunities here for Poirier to submit Nurmagomedov, who has a tendency to lead with his head up, neck exposed and a propensity to sit in top position with his arms prime for the taking from a competent Jiu-jitsu practitioner. Though if Poirier is unable to stop Nurmagomedov from taking him down and immobilizing his base with Khabib’s patented leg ties it’s going to be a long night for the American Top Team representative.

Historically, Nurmagomedov has struggled to make the 155-pound lightweight limit which is an indication that Khabib is a large framed lightweight who is going to enjoy a size and strength advantage in the evenings main event. Coming off a long long lay-off due to a suspension stemming from a post-fight brawl at UFC 229, Nurmagomedov is dominant wrestler in the Octagon who smashes opponents with a relentlessly high pace. If the past is any indication of the future, Poirier is going to have his work cut out for him this weekend if he hopes to unify the belts and become the divisions undisputed UFC lightweight champion.

The betting man is going to take Nurmagomedov in this fight for these reasons alone, but Poirier is a game stand up fighter who is not afraid to step into the pocket to create the opportunities necessary to win the fight. Its going to be do or die Saturday night in a classic striker versus wrestler matchup with a potential superfight looming on the horizon with former two-division champion Georges St. Pierre for who is no doubt looking to make history as the UFC’s first three division champion. There is a lot riding on the line Saturday night, tune into UFC 242 on ESPN+ for all the action and live results.

Posted on 01/30/2019

By: Jesse Donathan

The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) released the details surrounding the fines and suspensions Tuesday in relation to the October 6, 2018 UFC 229 brawl that saw UFC star Conor McGregor lose to UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov immediately before a brawl broke out cage side between Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor’s Brazilian Jiujitsu coach and Bellator MMA fighter Dillon Danis. “The Eagle” Nurmagomedov flew over the cage and jumped into the sea of spectators to sink his talons into the Jiujitsu prodigy before security quickly intervened and escorted Danis out of the arena.

While that brawl was in the process of being extinguished outside the cage, members of Nurmagomedov’s entourage stormed the Octagon where McGregor himself was the target of retribution from team Nurmagomedov. It was a wild, chaotic scene as McGregor was actively engaged inside the cage after an exhausting, unsuccessful effort against Nurmagomedov by members of Nurmagomedov’s Fight Spirit team who were seeking redemption for the notorious UFC 223 media day scrum bus attack by Conor McGregor and his crew.

That incident, itself a retaliation for an earlier encounter by McGregor’s teammate, the now former UFC fighter Artem Lobov who has been released from the promotion according to Tristen Critchfield in a January 29, 2019 Sherdog.com report titled, “Conor McGregor training partner Artem Lobov released by the UFC.” Lobov was confronted by Nurmagomedov in a hotel lobby after comments Lobov had made publicly concerning the amount of fights Nurmagomedov had previously pulled out of, even going as far as to question the Dagestani champion’s heart and professionalism according to a 2018 givemesport.com article titled, “The exact reason why Khabib Nurmagomedov slapped Artem Lobov in Brooklyn” by Raza Kazi.

In a January 29, 2019 MMA Fighting piece titled, “Khabib Nurmagomedov receives nine-month suspension, $500K fine for role in UFC 229 brawl” by Alexander K. Lee, Nurmagomedov’s “suspension can be reduced by up to three months pending Nurmagomedov’s participation in an anti-bullying public service announcement that must be approved by the NAC.”

Long time MMA reporter Josh Gross reported via a January 29, 2019 Twitter post that Conor McGregor received a six-month suspension and $50K fine, while the Nurmagomedov team members who stormed the cage, Abubakar Nurmagomedov and UFC fighter Zubaira Tukhugov, both received one-year suspensions and $25k fines.

According to a January, 29 2019 cbssports.com article titled, “Conor McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov receive punishments stemming from UFC 229 brawl” by Brian Campbell, McGregor will be eligible to compete as early as April while Nurmagomedov could be eligible to return as early as July of this year. Campbell would go on to report, “Ali Abdelaziz, Nurmagomedov’s manager, told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani on Tuesday that his fighter will pay the fines for both of his teammates. He also complained about the differences in punishments between McGregor and Nurmagomedov. ‘I don’t think it’s fair,’ Abdelaziz said. “Khabib gets $500,000 and Conor gets $50,000?”

McGregor was coming off a nearly two year lay off prior to losing to Nurmagomedov, a period that saw the UFC two division champion score the opportunity of a lifetime to fight one of boxings all-time great champions in Floyd Mayweather Jr. (50-0), losing to Mayweather in 10 rounds by TKO in a crossover fight where Mayweather reportedly carried the Irishmen according to a December 7, 2017 ESPN “Pardon The Interruption” YouTube video upload featuring Mike Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser.

Nurmagomedov himself is now looking to win the lottery, according to a January 28, 2019 MMAfighing.com article titled, “Report: Joe Rogan ‘guarantees’ Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Floyd Mayweather would sell ‘at least 1M PPV buys’ by Jeb Meshew, “Khabib has been teasing a potential crossover fight Mayweather since he submitted McGregor at UFC 229 and just last week, doubled down on the idea.”

This fight would absolutely resemble a real-life Rocky story, where an improbable fighter who doesn’t belong in there with the flamboyant, dominant champion manages to score the fight of a lifetime and takes the opportunity deadly serious while the rest of the world writes him off before the fight even occurs. Nurmagomedov would be coming to win, make no mistake about it, however unlikely his chances may actually seem to be. Mayweather is 50-0 for a reason, and should be able to handle the far less experienced mixed martial arts champion Nurmagomedov with relative ease considering it would be a professional boxing match but nobody told “The Eagle” that.

Posted on 11/20/2018

By: Michael Kane

Conor McGregor fought UFC Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in October, and was convincingly defeated. McGregor would like a rematch and so it seems would Khabib Nurmagomedov’s father.

Only next time in a boxing ring.

After the Dagestani’s win, he called out Floyd Mayweather, Mayweather said the fight may happen and that he could make more money fighting Khabib than he did when he beat McGregor in the 10th round last year.

The rumours on this potential match up have gone quiet and now it seems Khabib and his team still fancy a boxing bout against his old foe, McGregor.

Whether this would hold much appeal to boxing aficionados around the world is debatable however, could it launch the much talked about entrance to the boxing world of Zuffa Boxing?

Speaking to Russian newspaper, Izvestia, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov said, “As for the fight against Conor under boxing rules, this is a fight we are interested in. Khabib showed that he is able to beat the best strikers of mixed martial arts.

“He said this before, but few believed it. However, after strong victories over Michael Johnson, Edson Barboza and Conor, people begin to believe.”

Nurmagomedov knocked McGregor to the canvas in the second round of their bout at UFC 229 and may have taken some confidence that He could out strike the Irishman.

“Nurmagomedov is able to do it in the boxing ring. Khabib has all the skills to win by the rules of boxing. One of the key skills can be called endurance.

“I remember his five round fight with (Al) Iaquinta, in which Khabib showed his willingness to fight in absolutely any area, using everything from a left jab to control on the ground. I want to note that the fight against Iaquinta was of great importance to us, there was a belt at stake and it was important to keep the bout calm and take the win. Which we did!”

Posted on 10/30/2018

By: Sean Crose

With talk of a Floyd Mayweather-Khabib Numragomedov fight making the rounds, UFC president Dana White has made it clear that he’s in no mood for a rehash of Mayweather’s 2017 novelty superfight with UFC star Conor McGregor. “Listen,” White told TMZ, “if Mayweather wants to fight, come fight. You fight in the UFC. We’re not boxing him. We did that once. That’s over.” Although McGregor looked decent enough for his much hyped fight with Mayweather, the longtime pound for pound great ended up making easy work of the MMA star.

Now that Khabib himself has bested McGregor – in McGregor’s home sport, no less, it’s obvious White isn’t going to withstand another of his top UFC fighters bucking the odds the way McGregor did when he temporarily switched sports over a year ago. “You want to fight,” White reiterated, “you come fight . A real fight.” White’s words echoed McGregor’s own sentiments about boxing in the leadup to the Mayweather match, when the Irishman referred to boxing as half a fight.

As TMZ states: “UFC welterweight champ Tyron Woodley has offered to personally train Floyd and said he truly believes the 41-year-old could have real success in the Octagon.” While that may be true, Mayweather has a reputation – fair or not – of stacking the odds in his favor before a major bout. What’s more, Mayweather, now in his fifth decade, has only boxed throughout his long, undefeated career. Perhaps even more telling, however, is the fact that – unlike McGregor – Khabib doesn’t employ a style similar to boxing in the MMA octagon. Within the cage, the Russian is regarded as a world class wrestler, possessing an impressive skill set which might not lend itself well to the boxing ring.

Although he suggested boxing doesn’t allow combatants to engage in “a real fight,” White himself is interested in getting into the boxing business. “Yeah, we’re getting into boxing 100%, for sure,” he told TMZ. “I’m not diving in head first; I’m dipping my toe in.” With that in mind, TMZ reports that “Floyd has said he’s 70% certain the two sides will get a deal done to box — he expects to make a 9-FIGURE CHECK if it comes to fruition.” Other fighters have been mentioned as potential Mayweather opponents, though – including McGregor (again) and Mayweather arch rival Manny Pacquiao. Pacquiao, in particular, looks as if he might be particularly keen on a rematch of his record breaking 2015 fight with Mayweather.

Posted on 10/18/2018

By: Sean Crose

After demolishing the UFCs biggest star, Conor McGregor, in an MMA superfight, UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov recently called out Floyd Mayweather. Mayweather, who handily bested McGregor in a ring before Khabib did in an octagon, has responded. “Oh, we fighting!” the world’s favorite retired fighter told TMZ (provided Khabib is truly interested). “I can’t say what’s going on on Khabib’s end. But, on my end, we can make it happen.” As with McGregor, Khabib would have to face Mayweather in the ring, should they actually meet. “He called me out,” said Mayweather, “so, he gotta come to my world.”

Mayweather recently said he was going to have a second fight with Manny Pacquiao. Perhaps the rematch is now on the back burner, however. Khabib would surely be an easier fight for Floyd than Pacquiao would be – at least on paper. McGregor, who decided to have his first boxing match against the greatest fighter of a generation, at least had a reputation as a solid striker. That isn’t the case with Khabib, a deadly wrestler who wrapped himself like a snake around McGregor until the Irishman tapped out earlier this month. Mayweather, however, claims he can still make nine figures off a fight with Khabib.

One person who is particularly critical of Mayweather’s recent choice of (potential) opponents is none other than former foe Canelo Alvarez. Since losing a nearly one sided decision to Mayweather in 2013, Canelo has risen to the top of the fight game. This fact was made loud and clear on Wednesday, when it was announced that the middleweight champ had signed the most lucrative contract in all of sports with DAZN streaming service. “He wants to continue hurting boxing,” TMZ shows the Mexican star saying of Mayweather, “by making fights that don’t make sense … and not giving boxing the credibility it deserves.”

Perhaps not surprisingly, Canelo wants a second shot at Mayweather. “If he wants to return,” Canelo says, “I ask him to look my way to give a great fight to the fans.” There’s no doubt a second battle with Mayweather would be extraordinarily lucrative for all parties involved. Yet the 2018 version of Canelo unquestionably poses a greater threat to the aging Mayweather than Khabib, McGregor, or perhaps even Pacquiao does. “Let’s do the second fight,” Canelo claims. “It’s very important. We have something pending there, so let’s make the second fight.”

Posted on 10/11/2018

By: Sean Crose

Conor McGregor lost his second fight in a row last weekend, if you count his boxing match last year against Floyd Mayweather. This time, however, McGregor was back on his home turf, out of the ring and inside the cage where UFCs best prove their mettle. It was a one sided affair, with Russian lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov dominating his foe throughout most of the match before forcing the Irish star to tap out in the fourth round. No doubt it was a brilliant performance from Khabib. Unfortunately, the wrestler afterwards jumped out of the cage and attacked a member of McGregor’s team. Needless to say chaos ensued.

It’s easy for boxing fans to shake their collective heads at the supposed barbarity of the UFC, but boxing has earned quite a reputation of its own when it comes to combat sport’s insanity. As bad as last weekend was, at least no one lost an ear. One boxer is particularly qualified to talk about combat sport chaos. For Mayweather’s bout with Zab Judah famously turned chaotic when it went down back in 2006. “I’m not too familiar with the guy McGregor was fighting,” Mayweather is quoted as saying in regards to last weekend’s madness, “but I know the guy he was facing was undefeated.” Mayweather went on to condemn Saturday’s post fight action. “McGregor is a tough competitor,” he claimed, “but McGregor’s opponent jumped out of the ring and was fighting people in the crowd so, very unprofessional.”

Mayweather was notably cool when insanity erupted around him in the ring over a decade ago. He also knows, from facing McGregor, what it’s like to deal with the man’s taunts (it was the taunts that apparently took Khabib over the edge). Unlike Khabib, however, Mayweather remained sportsmanlike after defeating the controversial mma celebrity. “It’s going to be a huge fine,” Mayweather said of the penalties awaiting those involved in the McGregor-Khabib fracas. “I’m pretty sure because with my fight against Zab Judah, there was a crazy melee in the ring and a huge penalty – a huge fine. If I’m not mistaken, seven figures.”

Like McGregor, Mayweather knows how to get under the skin of an opponent. One thing the man has long been noted for, however, is discipline and self control when being under the bright lights. “I know when a guy’s jumping out of the cage into the audience and fighting different people,” Mayweather stated, “the fine is going to be crazy.”

Posted on 10/10/2018

By: William Holmes

“This is respect sport….This is not trash-talking sport…I don’t want people talk shit about opponents, talk shit about his father, religion. You cannot talk about religion. You cannot talk about nation. Guys, you cannot talk about this stuff.”-Khabib Nurmagomedov

The talk of the combat sporting world this weekend was the Khabib vs. Conor McGregor UFC fight, which featured Khabib picking McGregor apart before submitting him in the fourth round, then suddenly jumping out of the octagon cage and into the crowd to attack Dillon Danis, a member of McGregor’s team who was sitting cage side and allegedly taunting Khabib.

Chaos ensued afterwards and members of Khabib’s team jumped in the cage to attack McGregor. Suspensions will likely be given out, loss of purse and titles are also a possibility.

The sports world was divided. Were Khabib’s actions justified? Were his actions unexpected?

In order to attempt to understand Khabib, one first has to understand his background and where he is from, something that he was evidently trying to explain in his post fight explanation.

Khabib is from Dagestan, a Russian republic. It has been the forefront of Islamic Insurgency and ethnic tension since the 1990s. It borders Chechnya, the location of a severe conflict with Russia that often featured Chechen fighters infiltrating Dagestan to call for Jihad.

Khabib is a devout Sunni Muslim and well educated. He speaks several languages and is very proud of his culture and heritage.

Insults aimed at his religion or nation are not taken likely. I’m not arguing that Khabib is a terrorist or that he supports armed violent jihad, but pointing out that disrespect against his religion is taken very seriously.

So should we have been surprised by Khabib’s actions? Well, if you had some general knowledge about the region he is from, probably not. McGregor is notorious for his trash talking, but when he insulted Khabib he questioned the support Khabib has in his nation, mocked Khabib by offering him alcohol even though he’s a Muslim who does not drink, and called his manager a terrorist rat.

Khabib has been exposed to religious warfare and terrorism, and to lump him and his team with real terrorists was undoubtedly an insult that he could not ignore.

Khabib claims Dillon Danis hurled Muslim insults at him after the fight and that’s why he jumped over the fence, a claim Danis denies. But nobody should have been surprised that Khabib was still fired up after his fight with McGregor was over.

“I know my father’s gonna smash me when I go home because…I know he’s gonna smash me.”-Khabib Nurmagomedov

“I think that for Khabib, the most severe sanctions would be my regard. I am going to regard this severely. I warned him. For me, the most important thing is discipline. You can do whatever you want in the octagon, but beyond its barrier-this is the border separating civilians, there are children, women, bystanders.

This fight took place within the octagon. That’s the spectacle But I am categorically against fighting outsid the octagon. Outside of the octagon, you need to exist peacefully. Fight in the octagon.”
-Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov

Now for the million dollar, or two million dollar question. Were his actions justified?

Pre-fight trash talk has been a part of combat sports for years. McGregor and Mayweather’s trash talk was probably more entertaining than the actual fight itself.

But even though Mayweather and McGregor insulted each other greatly leading up to the fight, they were able to be cordial in the post fight interviews.

It’s difficult to find too many situations where a fighter leaped into the crowd immediately after a fight to engage someone in the crowd.

But there has been several situations where members of a boxer’s team jumped in a cage to start a brawl, and they were usually dealt with by the commission harshly.

Roger Mayweather jumped in the ring when Floyd fought Zab Judah and was hit with a low blow and a punch behind the head. An all out melee ensued when members from both camps entered the ring and brawled. Afterwards, Yoel Judah was fined $100,000 and had his license revoked for a year. Roger Mayweather was fined $200,000 and had his license revoked for one year. Leonard Ellerbe was fined $50,000 and had his license revoked for four months. Even Zab Judah received a fine of $350,000 and had his license revoked for a year.

Another example of a brawl happening in boxing was during the riot during the first Riddick Bowe/Andrew Golota fight. The fight was stopped after Golota landed several low blows on Bowe after repeated warnings. Members of Bowe’s security team jumped in the ring and went after Golota.

Rock Newman, Bowe’s manager and promoter, was suspended for a year and fined $250,000 for the incident.

More recently, one would have to look at the fight between Jose Uzcategui and Andre Dirrell, which featured Leon Lawson Jr., the Uncle of Dirrell, sucker punch Uzcategui. Lawson was suspended by the Maryland State Athletic Commission and faced criminal charges as a result.

Of course, one of the most famous post fight brawls or sucker punches was when James Butler sucker punched Richard Grant on ESPN after he lost his fight. He was charged with assault and suspended. In fact, he served four months at Rikers Island as a result.

Were his actions, jumping into the crowd to attack bystanders, justified? Precedent by athletic commission for boxers and members of their team behaving poorly and attacking fighters after a sanctioned fight is over are usually dealt with harshly.

There really isn’t any specific precedent to determine if the actions of Khabib were justified, but it appears likely that the commission won’t find any justification for a fighter to jump into a crowd to start a wild brawl, and will also likely deal with him harshly.

Unexpected? No.

Justified? Also no.

Khabib’s punishment awaits.

Posted on 10/07/2018

By: William Holmes

The T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada was the host site for the biggest UFC PPV of 2018, featuring a main event between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Conor McGregor for the UFC Lightweight Title.

Photo Credit: UFC Twitter Account

The arena was starting to fill by the time of the first fight of the main card of the ppv, a strawweight woman’s bout between Michelle Waterson (15-6) and Felice Herrig (14-7).

Waterson opened up with using her kicks more like jabs and was effective with her front leg side kick to the thigh. Herrig was able to land a solid straight right in the opening round, but Waterson was more effective with her strikes.

Herrig was able to get Waterson’s back against the cage in the early moments of the second round, but Waterson was eventually able to break free and land a hard high kick to the head of Herrig before throwing her to the ground. Waterson was able to finish the second round with some strong ground and pound.

Herrig was able to find some success in the third round with her dirty boxing and was able to defend one of Waterson’s takedown attempts and maintain control on top. But Waterson was able to land some hard elbows from the bottom and briefly threatened with an omoplata.

The final scores were 30-26, 29-28, and 30-27 for Michelle Waterson.

The next bout of the night was a heavyweight bout between Former M1 Heavyweight Champion Alexander Volkov (29-6) and Derrick Lewis (20-5) .

Volkov was the much taller fighter and was controlling the first round with his reach and counter right hands. He was able to get side mount and transition to taking the back of Lewis, but Lewis was able to regain top position and land some short elbows as the round ended.

Volkov was able to stun Lewis with a combination in the opening minutes of the second round and had the left eye of Lewis swollen. Lewis took several hard shots but was able to stay on his feet.

Lewis took several hard right hands form Volkov in first half of the third round but showed he had a strong chin and took his best shots. Lewis looked like he was going towards a decision loss but he landed a devastating right cross followed by some concussive ground and pound that turned off the lights of Volkov.

Derrick Lewis wins by shocking knockout at 4:49 of the third round.

The next bout of the night was between Ovince Saint Preux (22-11) and Dominick Reyes (9-0) in the light heavyweight division.

Reyes, a southpaw, exchanged body kicks with Saint Preux in the opening round and was able to stuff the takedown attempts of Saint Preux. Reyes was able to land some short elbows to the side of Saint Preux’s head on some of the takedown attempts, and had Ferguson is applying pressure. Lands a hard straight right.

By the second round Reyes had landed six times the number of strikes that Saint Preux had landed, and had the forehead of Saint Preux badly bleeding. Saint Preux looked exhausted near the end of the second and Reyes had built a comfortable lead.

Saint Preux needed a stoppage in the final round to pull out the victory and he did press the action, but Reyes was able to fight wisely and suddenly landed a stunning left cross to the chin of Saint Preux that sent him crashing to the mat as the round came to an end.

Dominick Reyes wins by decision with scores of 30-27 on all three scorecards.

The co-main event of the night was between Tony Ferguson (25-3) and Anthony Pettis (21-7) in the lightweight division.

Ferguson looked like the significantly bigger man but was hobbled by leg kicks from Pettis early on. Ferguson and Pettis both tried spinning back fists in the opening round and were able to land hard shots, but Ferguson was landing the harder shots.

Pettis was able to drop Ferguson early in the second round, who had blood pouring out of his mouth from the shots of Pettis. Ferguson was able to cut Pettis to and get back to his feet and recover, and continued to apply continuous pressure and pound on Pettis from cage side to cage side. Pettis had a cut by his hairline and the ringside doctor took a look at it but allowed the fight to continue. Pettis got tagged badly several times as the round came to an end.

When Pettis went back to his corner he told his corner he broke his hand and his corner stopped the fight

Tony Ferguson wins by TKO at the end of the second round due to a broken right hand on Anthony Pettis.

The main event was between Khabib Nurmagomedov (26-0) and Conor McGregor (21-3) for the UFC Lightweight Title.

McGregor, despite being the bigger draw, entered the Octagon first to a positive fan reaction and Khabib entered second to mainly boos and jeers.

McGregor pressed forward in the opening round and was able to land an overhand right and some low leg kicks. Khabib went immediately for a takedown and McGregor was able to immediately stop it. Khabib completed the takedown and finished the round on top of McGregor but was not able to do much damage from there.

McGregor got tagged with an unexpected vicious overhand right in the second round by Khabib that had McGregor mometarily hurt. Both were throwing hard, wild punches and Khabib goes in for a takedown and is able to finish it. Khabib lands some hard ground and pound through the remainder of the round and at one point threatens McGregor with a kimura but doesn’t finish it.

McGregor had a much better third round and was able to tag Khabib with several combinations and stuffed his takedown attempts. McGregor appeared to gain some momentum this round and Khabib showed signs of tiring.

Khabib appeared fired up at the end of the third round and was yelling at McGregor as he went back to his corner.

Khabib opened up the fourth round by throwing a wild two punch combination but missed wildly, and McGregor was able to land with a two punch combination of his own. Khabib goes in for a takedown and completes it and transitions into a full mount. Khabib lands some heavy ground and pound before before taking McGregor’s back and sinking in a rear naked choke.

McGregor is forced to tap and Khabib doesn’t immediately let go. As Khabib rises to his feet he appears to spit in the direction of McGregor and immediately begins yelling at the corner of McGregor.

Khabib, who just had the biggest win of his career, then goes nuclear and jumps out of the octagon and goes after one of McGregor’s cornermen and starts a fight in the crowd.

All hell breaks loose and one of Khabib’s teammates jumps in the ring and begins unloading on McGregor. It takes several minutes before officials are able to restore order.

Khabib, still enraged, demands his belt but Dana White refuses to put it on him. Khabib is escorted out of the cage and into the back with a lengthy suspension almost certainly to follow.

A career defining win for Khabib turns into one of the most shameful moments in MMA history.

Posted on 10/05/2018

By: William Holmes

On Saturday night the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada will host the biggest pay per view of the year in either boxing or MMA as the UFC Lightweight Title will be up for grabs when undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov faces Conor McGregor in the main event of the evening.

McGregor is the UFC’s biggest draw, and Khabib is McGregor’s toughest test to date in MMA. This blockbuster event will be getting a lot of attention in the mainstream media leading up to Saturday.

The co-main event of the evening will be between Anthony Pettis and Tony Ferguson in the lightweight division. The winner of this bout will likely be in line for a future title shot against the winner of Khabib and McGregor.

Photo Credit: UFC Twitter Account

The undercard has some intriguing fights throughout. Ovince Saint Preux will face Dominick Reyes in the light heavyweight division, Derrick Lewis will face Alexander Volkov in the heavyweight division, Sergio Pettis will face Jussier Formiga in the flyweight division, and Michelle Waterson will face Felice Herrig in the Women’s Straweight division.

The UFC tends to show more fights on their pay per view offerings than boxing so five fights will likely be televised.

The following is a preview of the co-main event and the main event of the night.

Anthony Pettis (21-7) vs. Tony Ferguson (23-3); Lightweights

The winner of the co-main event of the night will likely move on to a future title shot.

Anthony Pettis was once considered a top rated contender, but he has struggled recently and has only gone 3-3 in his last six fights, and actually has a losing record of 3-5 in his last eight fights.

Tony Ferguson has been on a roll and is currently riding a ten fight win streak. However, his activity is of some concern as he has only fought three times since the beginning of 2016, while Pettis has fought seven times since the beginning of 2016.

Ferguson is 34 years old and three years older than Pettis. Ferguson will have a very slight two inch height advantage on Pettis.

Both fighters like to finish their fight. Of Pettis’ 21 victories, 17 have come by way of stoppage. 18 of Ferguson’s victories have come by way of stoppage.

There really is no such thing as an easy fight in the UFC. Pettis has defeated the likes of Michael Chiesa, Jim Miller, Charles Oliveira, Gilbert Melendez, and Benson Henderson. His losses were to Rafael Dos Anjos, Eddie Alvarez, Edson Barboza, Max Holloway, and Dustin Poirier.

Ferguson’s only losses were to Michael Johnson and two lesser known fighters very early in his career. He has defeated the likes of Kevin Lee, Rafael Dos Anjos, Edson Barboza, Josh Thomson, Gleison Tibau, Abel Trujillo, and Danny Castillo.

Pettis might have a slight edge in striking, but Ferguson has a strong edge in grappling. Ferguson was a NCWA Collegiate National Champion in Wrestling and was a high school state champion in Michigan. Pettis didn’t pick up on grappling until later on in his life.

Ferguson should win this fight by decision. He’s never been stopped by strikes in his career, and that’s Anthony Pettis’ best weapon.

Khabib Nurmagomedov (26-0) vs. Conor McGregor (21-3); UFC Lightweight Championship

As stated earlier, there really is no such thing as an easy fight in the UFC, and that’s why it’s very impressive for Khabib Nurmagomedov to have an undefeated record.

Khabib is a fighter with a very strong grappling background. He was born in Dagestan, Russia and has never lost. His win streak currently stands at 26 victories in a row.

Both Khabib and McGregor are 30 years old, though Khabib will have a two inch height advantage on McGregor.

Khabib has a history of injuries and trouble making weight, though he has made weight for this weekend. 16 of his 26 wins were by stoppage, with eight by TKO and eight by submission.

McGregor’s excitement as a fighter is much more than his personality. Of McGregor’s 21 victories, 18 have come by TKO/KO and one by submission. Only two of his wins were by judges decision.

Neither fighter can consider themselves to be super active since 2016. Khabib fought once in 2018, once in 2017, and twice in 2016. McGregor did not fight yet in an MMA cage in 2018 or 2017. He fought three times in 2016 and was last seen competing in a boxing ring when he was stopped by Floyd Mayweather Jr.

McGregor has beaten the likes of Eddie Alvarez, Nate Diaz, Jose Aldo, Chad Mendes, Dennis Silver, Dustin Poirier, and Max Holloway. His losses were to Joseph Duffy, Nate Diaz, and Artemij Sitenkov.

Nobody has ever beaten Khabib. He has defeated the likes of Al Iaquinta, Edson Barboza, Michael Johnson, Darrel Horcher, Rafael Dos Anjos, Thiago Tavares, and Gleison Tibau.

One of the biggest factors that jumps out at this writer is that McGregor’s three losses were all by submission and he’s facing a fighter who’s known for being a very strong grappler. Khabib has finished 8 previous opponents by submission.

If McGregor is going to win he’ll have to stop Khabib with strikes, it’s difficult to imagine him keeping the fight standing for five rounds.

Even though McGregor recently signed a lucrative contract extension with the UFC and is their most popular fighter, his recent inactivity and weakness in grappling will likely be issues that Khabib will exploit.

This writer feels that Khabib’s strengths will make for a very bad matchup for McGregor on Saturday.

Posted on 01/05/2017

Khabib Offers to Pay Ferguson $200,000 to Fight Him Telling Him to Shut Up and Fight
By: Oliver Dollimore

Undefeated Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov has had a rough go when it comes to big opportunities. “The Eagle” sits at no. 1 in the 155-pound division, but he yet to compete for the title.

Khabib Nurmagomedov offered No. 2-ranked Tony Ferguson $200,000 to fight him. The bout, which has been rumored to in the works, hasn’t come to fruition just yet due to Ferguson being in contract disputes with the promotion, although it is a fight that makes quite a bit of sense.

Tony Ferguson has made it abundantly clear that money is an issue standing in the way of a fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov.Specifically, the fact Nurmagomedov is being paid more than Ferguson.

Nurmagomedov, for his part, wants to get this highly anticipated No. 1 contender’s fight signed and delivered. So much so that he’s willing to pay in order to make the bout happen at UFC 209 on March 4.

Nurmagomedov (24-0, 8-0 UFC) originally wanted a fight with new lightweight champion Conor McGregor, but since McGregor is on the shelf for a while, Ferguson was the next best choice in his eyes. Meanwhile, Ferguson (22-3, 12-1 UFC) believed that a win over Rafael dos Anjos was going to get him a title a shot. That never materialized either due to McGregor’s layoff and other factors.

While it’s highly unusual for a fighter to offer to pay another fighter to compete against him, Khabib is apparently just doing whatever he can to secure a high-profile bout. Hopefully the UFC can figure the issue out and get these two in the cage together to see who the true number one contender is at 155 pounds.

Nurmagomedov spoke to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour to explain the current situation from his perspective:

“This is impossible [speaking about Ferguson wanting equal pay], (the) UFC never does this. Because I’m different, he’s different. He talks about (a) nine (fight) win streak, but I’m talking about (a) 24 (fight) win streak. Eight years (I’ve been) undefeated. Michael Johnson beat him, I beat Michael Johnson. He fought Rafael dos Anjos (in a) close fight. I dominated Rafael dos Anjos. When he fought with Danny Castillo, you guys can watch this fight, he lost for sure. Why does he want to make money like this? He needs to shut up and take this fight.”

As far as the contract dispute goes, Ferguson himself said on today’s edition of The MMA Hour that he isn’t sure why he isn’t being paid as he’d like to be by the UFC. “El Cucuy” has said that he’d like to be compensated in the same way that “The Eagle” is and he added in that there’s no reason why he shouldn’t be:

“I’m not sure, man. You ask them. Ask them why they’re not paying me, and maybe we’ll get some answers,” Ferguson said. “I haven’t had the opportunities that they have (given Nurmagomedov), as far as, over the past five fights, I’ve only been on one pay-per-view. All the rest have been on FOX Sports 1 cards, which limits my mainstream exposure. Khabib has been on three pay-per-views and two UFC on FOXs, which draws much larger audiences than FOX Sports 1 cards.”

“Despite this, there’s nothing that suggests that Khabib draws any larger than me. I haven’t been given the same opportunities or the same push as Khabib. I don’t belong to AKA or a big major sport’s program. I choose to do different things on my own and I’m building my own legacy, my own facilities, but that’s later on. That’s a completely different subject. So, as far as compensation goes, like I said, the UFC has been known to change it (for a particular fight) over their history, and I’m just looking for them to get this thing going, man. Let’s go. Let’s go, UFC.”

Fighter pay has long been a debated topic and Ferguson feels as if Nurmagomedov’s offer illuminates the problems within the system. As for right now, however, the surging contender encourages fans to get ‘anxious’ about the potential bout:

“But for right now, I’m enjoying my time. The fans, you guys need to get anxious, man. Let’s get some chatter going. Let’s get the UFC involved with this. If you’ve got Khabib willing to sacrifice his life and give me $200,000 of his own money, something’s wrong with that sh*t. I’m not going to take that guy’s money. He’s got a family too. So do I, and he’s got bills to pay. So I’m not going after Khabib’s. All I want is my stuff right and to be compensated for what my numbers prove to be, so let’s go kids.”

Ferguson has made a name for himself by winning an incredible nine straight as well as most recently beating former champion Rafael dos Anjos. Would you like to see him take on Nurmagomedov next?