Khabib Nurmagomedov News

Justin Golightly - December 30, 2017

Whether you’re working in MMA media or just a fan, fights can be stressful. We always have our favorites and we all get invested. It’s easy to log on to Twitter and talk as much (or more) trash to ‘haters’ of the fighter we root for, spouting off encyclopedic facts or quality of opponents and skill clashes. Now imagine that you’re in a relationship with one of those fighters. Not just in any organization, but fighting in the co-main event sport for a UFC pay-per-view. Bruna Barboza, Edson Barboza’s wife, recently gave some candid insight into what that is like. “[Edson Barboza]’s unbearable when he’s cutting weight [laughs]. Before we had [our son] Noah, I used to go with him to every fight. We flew on a Tuesday and he didn’t eat anything before the fight. We wouldn’t talk because he was unbearable. One day I ate a cereal bar and he said, ‘Why are you eating this in front of me? Are you trying to piss me off?’ Imagine if I was eating a brownie [laughs]. I can’t speak with him on fight week, not even a ‘hi’ or ‘good morning. I don’t watch the fight if I don’t go to the arena because I think it’s horrible. I don’t know what will happen, if he’s going to get hurt, and I won’t be there to help.”

Justin Golightly - December 30, 2017

The main and co-main event of UFC 219 are some of the best fights all year, with the match-ups that we’ve had in 2017, that’s high praise. Cris Cyborg defending her women’s UFC featherweight title against Holly Holm is arguably the biggest female fight of all-time. Meanwhile, Khabib Nurmagomedov makes his triumphant return to fight against top contender and dangerous striker Edson Barboza in a war for title contention. It’s interesting to see Conor McGregor’s coach John Kavanagh’s outlook on the match-ups — especially the co-main event — seeing as how he could still be a future opponent for McGregor, especially if he does end up ever fighting in Russia. “Khabib [Nurmagomedov] by stoppage in the championship rounds. He will be hit in the first but wrestling, in particular his body lock, will break [ Edson] Barboza as fight progresses. Ground-and-pound stoppage in fourth or fifth round. [Holly] Holm by stoppage within three rounds. The lack of size advantage [for Cris Cybog] plus Holm’s technical ability in striking will decide this. Cyborg relies on strength and intimidation a lot, she wont have that here.” – John Kavanagh via his Twitter.

Justin Golightly - December 29, 2017

No weight issues for top contender @TeamKhabib, as he registers 155.5 pounds on the scale 💪. Watch #UFC219 official weigh ins LIVE: https://t.co/2iQmYbS437 pic.twitter.com/59GjoFZHrp — MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) December 29, 2017

Justin Golightly - December 29, 2017

You may have saw some news yesterday about Khabib Nurmagomedov that you just couldn’t believe. In the midst of all his weight cutting drama and criticisms, he revealed that he was thinking about switching divisions. No to welterweight where you’d think he would end up, but actually down to featherweight. As crazy as that sounds, his new nutritionist not only says that he’s on track to have his best cut ever, but that getting down to 145-pounds is possible. “Well, [Khabib Nurmagomedov] means it [when he talks about moving to featherweight]. This cut’s going really well. Again, I’m not trying to tempt the MMA gods here, but the cut’s going really well. And when a guy sees that the cut’s going really well, and you see big possible fights at 145, you think, ‘Well, are there things I could start doing two months sooner and be 10 pounds lighter to make the cut easier?’ You start looking, ‘Are there things I could do?’ So, I think he’s seeing this weight cut’s going better and seeing maybe if he even starts sooner, it would be easier. But no, I think he means it.”

Justin Golightly - December 28, 2017

Khabib Nurmagomedov is a smashing machine. He’s been fighting since 2008 and is undefeated. No one in the UFC has solved the brutal Sambo problem that Nurmagomedov poses. The only tarnish on his entire career is missing weight, resulting in the cancellation of his fight with Tony Ferguson. So far, it looks like his cut for UFC 219’s bout against Edson Barboza is going very smoothly and he’s happier and healthier than ever. It’s going so well apparently, that Khabib Nurmagomedov is going down — yes, down — to the featherweight division. “Yeah, I think about this [jump down to the featherweight division]. We think about this last month because we watch our weight and we watch how many guys who fight in 145, they have same weight like me. I think fighting in two divisions. Take belt in two divisions is good idea. Everybody think about I can fight in 170, but to be honest, I think I’m small guy at 170. Like, we can watch Cowboy. Cowboy is small at 170. But in 155, he don’t look like small. [Rafael] dos Anjos, when he fight Magny or other guys, he looks small. He beats these guys, but he look small. That’s why I think with 170, I am small. When you go to the fight with high level welterweights, you have to be weighing like 190 when you go to the cage. I think 9 weeks I can make weight [at 145]. My plan is Edson [Barboza] and Tony [Ferguson]. After, we will think about this.”— Edson Barboza speaking to MMA NYTT.

Justin Golightly - December 27, 2017

We all have some form of PTSD regarding Khabib Nurmagomedov’s weight cuts. It’s not a dig on him, it’s just a simple fact of the matter which Nurmagomedov seems to realize himself. He’s dealt with endless Tweets about tiramisu and trolling memes since March when he was forced to pull-out of his highly anticipated fight with Tony Ferguson. This is where UFC’s nutritionist Tyler ‘Melee’ Minton comes in. We’ve never gotten this close of a look inside Khabib’s cut and it seems like he’s never been in better hands. If the photo that was dropped yesterday doesn’t convince you, just read how Minton breaks it all down. “The UFC wants fighters no higher than 10 percent of their weight class on arrival. Two meals and a lot of water later, Khabib Nurmagomedov weighs in more than a pound under [which puts him at about 170 pounds]. Sorry haters. That’s an extremely easy weight cut considering he’s been drinking two gallons daily and eating a good bit. Muscle holds water. Fat doesn’t. He’s drinking two gallons of water a day and still eating more carbohydrates [250 grams daily] this week than many fighters eat a month out. One gram of glycogen stored in the muscles holds two-three grams of water. Khabib will drink two gallons of water every day this week except Thursday, when he will cut that in half. Then begin drinking again Friday morning. He will never go without water. He’s also normally much heavier than this.” — Tyler Melee Minton via multiple updates on Twitter.

Russell Ess - December 26, 2017

It has been over one year since we have seen Khabib Nurmagomedov compete in the Octagon. The current number 2 UFC ranked lightweight last fought at UFC 205 against Michael Johnson winning with a kimura submission in the third round. Nurmagomedov was scheduled to fight Tony Ferguson for the interim UFC lightweight title at UFC 209 in March. However, Nurmagomedov was taken to the hospital “due to weight management medical issues” just before the weigh-ins took place and the fight had to be canceled.

Justin Golightly - December 23, 2017

The last UFC card of the year is fast approaching and there is yet another big lightweight fight that can decide who is in contention for the throne. Eddie Alvarez put on a slobberknocker of a fight against Justin Gaethje, rocketing him back up to the top, but Khabib Nurmagomedov is facing Edson Barboza to hold his place at the front. Meanwhile, Tony Ferguson is waiting to unify the titles against Conor McGregor. And who blames him? Nurmagomedov’s coach Javier Mendez sure doesn’t, but it’s why he’s not too confident that the Ferguson fight is next. “If that fight [with Tony Ferguson] does come together, it’s gonna be because Conor [McGregor] vacated the title. That’s the only way I see that happening. Otherwise, Tony’s gonna hang in there for that golden nugget, and I don’t blame him. He wants the fights for that big money, but you know what, there also comes a time too with the time of limitation too. You can’t hold on forever. You can’t hold the division on forever, you know? You’re eventually gonna have to be put in a situation where if you don’t fight Conor you’re gonna have to fight somebody. So, the only fight that makes sense for Tony if Conor doesn’t fight him, is Khabib. That’s it. There’s no other fight that makes sense, there’s no other fight that people will buy into.”

Russell Ess - December 20, 2017

November 12, 2016, was the last time we saw Conor McGregor fight in the Octagon. McGregor became the UFC lightweight champion that night, capturing the belt from Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 and also became the first fighter in history to hold two UFC weight division’s titles simultaneously. Over a year has passed since and McGregor has only competed once and it was outside of the Octagon in a highly lucrative boxing match against Floyd Mayweather, which was the second highest pay-per-view event of all time.

Tom Taylor - December 20, 2017

On December 30, the UFC will return to it’s home in Las Vegas, Nevada with UFC 219. In this stacked card’s co-main event, undefeated lightweight star Khabib Nurmagomedov will take on Edson Barboza in hopes of reasserting himself as the division’s top contender, and earning a fight with interim champion Tony Ferguson. While fans are very excited to see Nurmagomedov return to the cage, there is also widespread worry that he’ll fail to make weight. He was previously forced out of a planned bout with Ferguson as the result of a disastrous cut, after all.

Justin Golightly - December 19, 2017

Back at UFC 218, the UFC’s unofficial ‘Most Violent’ title was on the line between Justin Gaethje and Eddie Alvarez and they tore the house down. It was brutal. It was bloody. It was nearly three whole rounds of nonstop destruction. Even Gaethje was happy with losing to Alvarez by knockout. It seems like the only person who didn’t seem to enjoy the fight between Gaethje and Alvarez was Khabib Nurmagomedov. He voiced his criticisms on the scrap and it didn’t take long for Alvarez himself to respond. No wayyy @TeamKhabib called Me unprofessional… Ain’t that some shit . God bless You my man haven’t laughed this hard in a while 🤣🤣 Merry Christmas 🎄🎁

Tom Taylor - December 19, 2017

It’s arguable that Eddie Alvarez and Justin Gaethje’s lightweight showdown was the most anticipated feature of the UFC 218 bill, and when the cage door closed, the fight delivered on expectations. For two and a half rounds, the two patron saints of violence beat each other silly, throwing caution to the wind, until Alvarez put his foe down for good with a third-round knee to the face. While this fight stands out as one of the best of the year, however, not everybody enjoyed it. File undefeated UFC lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov into that group.

Chris Taylor - November 25, 2017

Interim UFC lightweight champion Tony Ferguson has finally responded to Khabib Nurmagomedov. The undefeated Russian standout, Nurmagomedov, made headlines earlier this week when he revealed that the UFC had offered him a fight with Tony Ferguson at UFC 219.

Justin Golightly - November 24, 2017

It’s been a couple of weeks since Conor McGregor stormed inside of a Bellator cage and caused absolute chaos. Everyone is still talking about it besides the UFC, who have no released any statement about the incident. Aside from the lead regulator from the Dublin Bellator card saying that allegedy the UFC pulled McGregor off of UFC 219, it looks like the Irish double champ will get off scot-free. Khabib Nurmagomedov surprisingly relates to McGregor’s actions, but ultimately thinks the organization needs to teach him some discipline. “My very good friend fought for a big organization in Europe at 57 kgs, 125 [pounds]. When he win, I do same sh-t. I come inside and I hold him because I’m very happy. I’m jumping on the cage, I come inside. A lot of people come inside, my friends, my teammates, because we’re very happy but when referee tells me, ‘Hey, you guys have to go out,’ I don’t try to fight with him because I know referee is not professional fighter, he’s referee. I have to respect rules. But I go crazy a little bit after I understand, ‘Hey, this is not good. I have to stop this,’ and I try to tell my friends, my teammates that we have to go out. Yes, it’s okay, but not all the time.”

Justin Golightly - November 22, 2017

Khabib Nurmagomedov wants to fight Tony Ferguson. He wants a chance to ‘smash his face’ so bad, he doesn’t even want a fight with Conor McGregor yet. It’s easy to see why he feels the need to take care of unfinished business — they’ve been slated to fight each other as far back as 2015 — but now he may have even more reason to hold a grudge. Allegedly, Nurmagomedov and Ferguson were offered a contract to fight at UFC 219. Nurmagomedov says he signed, but Ferguson never did. Shortly after the news, Daniel Cormier had some choice words for the UFC lightweight champ in support of his AKA teammate.  So I walk into the gym today and @khabib_nurmagomedov walks up and says the @Ufc is wanting to make me vs @tonyfergusonxt for dec 30. They wanna make the card bigger for end of the year. Then he tells me that tony is saying no to the fight. Come on Tony, that ain’t gangsta bruh. Take the fight man!!!! And by the way Ufc says tony won’t ever fight Conor so that’s not an option. The fans really want it. Come on My friend, hit him with that low single u always talk about. #khabibchamp #weareaka

Tom Taylor - November 22, 2017

This December 30, on the main card of UFC 219, undefeated Dagestani lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov is scheduled to step into the cage with venomous Brazilian striker Edson Barboza. From the sounds of it, however, Nurmagomedov has also been offered a UFC 219 bout with interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson. In a Wednesday afternoon Tweet, Nurmagomedov announced that he’d been offered this fight with Ferguson, and that he has accepted it.

Tom Taylor - November 22, 2017

While Jose Aldo was surprisingly understanding of Conor McGregor‘s infamous rampage at Bellator 187, Khabib Nurmagomedov is not. Speaking on the Talk and Talker Podcast, Nurmagomedov went off on McGregor for his actions, suggesting he should have calmed down when he was told to leave the cage, and that he never should have gotten physical with the referee.

Justin Golightly - October 28, 2017

While we’ve been waiting along with Khabib Nurmagomedov on the sidelines for an announcement, we got our wish yesterday. A fight with Edson Barboza was made official to fight at UFC 219. This is a time for celebration, but fans and media can’t help but have painful flashbacks to the fights Nurmagomedov has had to pull out of. For most of 2016, we were hyped Tony Ferguson would fight Khabib, but it never materialized. Barboza isn’t worried about all that though, he’s just happy to finally fight one of the best in the world. “Khabib [Nurmagomedov] is a great fighter. He’s a true fighter. I knew if this contract comes on his head, he’s signing. This is an opportunity to have the two best lightweights in the world fighting. He definitely want the best and is one of the best and it makes me very excited for this fight. Definitely not [worried about Nurmagomedov not showing up]. I know Injuries happen all the time. I never fight 100% in my body in my life. Always every fighter have some injuries. Maybe I can get hurt in my camp. This happens to everybody and I’m not scared about this. […] He train so hard. I think for sure he train very hard. Sometimes it happens. I can’t do nothing. If you don’t train, you not get hurt. But me I train hard all the time, he trains hard all the time. I hope it doesn’t happen with me and him.”