It’s looking less and less likely that Khabib Nurmagomedov will be able to make his Lightweight title fight against Tony Ferguson, which is pegged for April 18, 2020, at a location that is still to-be-determined. That’s because “The Eagle” is currently grounded in Russia because of the country’s lockdown regulations as a result of the coronavirus pandemic (details).
But you can still get your Khabib fix in as Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has reached deep into its video vault to offer up Nurmagomedov’s promotional debut at UFC on FX 1 way back in 2012.
Fighting on the undercard of the event, Khabib took on Kamal Shalorus, who was coming off a loss to Jim Miller. Nurmagomedov, meanwhile, had already made a name for himself in Russia, winning 16 straight fights, including 12 stoppage victories.
After a tepid first round, followed by a dominant second, Khabib went on to submit Shalorus via rear-naked choke in the third and final frame. And the rest, as the say, is history as “The Eagle” has gone on to win 11 more fights inside the Octagon, including claiming the 155-pound strap.
Unfortunately, the one fight everyone wants to see just can’t seem to come to fruition, as the promotion has staged a fight between him and Tony Ferguson on five occasions, and it seems it is well on its way to being canceled for the fifth time.
But the clock hasn’t struck midnight just yet, as Dana White is still hoping to pull a rabbit out of his hat to finally make this fight happen. If not, this man is ready to step in and save the day.
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