“Most likely Ferguson will be next.”
Not much time has passed since the last fight of Khabib Nurmagomedov, and in the world of MMA there is already a lot of talk about the future rival of the Russian. With a high degree of probability, they will nevertheless become Tony Ferguson. This was announced on Monday by UFC President Dana White.
“Now we need to arrange a duel between Habib and Tony Ferguson. Conor McGregor? He is one of the three best fighters in the world. Now he is incredibly focused on a possible revenge with Habib, ”quotes White TMZ.
Confirmed information about a possible fight with the Brazilian and Nurmagomedov himself.
“Most likely, Ferguson will be next, because there are no other rivals. Tony deserves it, and we have to fight. After that I can meet Georges Saint-Pierre, but I will not go up in the welterweight. I want to stay in my category, defend the title and become the best lightweight ever and one of the best fighters of all time, ”said Habib in an interview with Netcast Zone’s YouTube channel.
At the same time, Nurmagomedov once again emphasized that for him a rematch with McGregor does not at all come first.
“Conor must earn a rematch. He can ask for whatever he wants, but that will not change anything. He must return and earn his chance. He needs to return, win some fights, and then we will discuss it, ”Nurmagomedov added.
In the meantime, the UFC lightweight champion continues to recover after a fight with Dustin Porrier and pleases his fans with informative posts on social networks. In particular, Habib told how at the age of 14 he volunteered to fight with one of his father's friends.
“I remember once in the village my father and I built a wall near the house. Uncle Muhammad passed by. Then he says to my father: "Well, let your son down from the wall, I will tear him now." I look like this: here's an old gas. It was 2002, I was 14 years old, I was sure that I would not feel it, but he threw me off the rack. I was extremely indignant after the fight, because my father did not let us reach the end, saying: “Muhammad, do not kill my son, I still need him.” I, not understanding their sarcasm, said: “Let us fight normally until the end,” Nurmagomedov wrote on Instagram.
View this Instagram post
I remember in the village once, Father and I were building a wall near the house, Uncle Muhammad passed by and told my Father, well, let your son down from the wall, right now I will tear him up, I look like this is the old newspaper 😁 It was 2002, I was 14 years old, I was sure that I wouldn’t feel him, but he threw me off the rack 🤼♂️ I was extremely indignant after the fight, because my father did not let us fight to the end, telling him, Muhammad don’t kill my son, he told me still needed, I did not understand their sarcasm😁 said, let us fight normally until the end))) In general, we recall this situation so far😉 Alhamdulillah for all that we have, the Almighty leaves nothing and nobody in one position, time passes and everything changes, someone is born, and someone is dying. Someone is getting older, while someone is getting younger. But we must look after and support our elders. May Allah give all our elders health, take care of them and everything will return to you.
Posted by Khabib Nurmagomedov (@khabib_nurmagomedov) Oct 14, 2019 at 4:41 am PDT
Meanwhile, another UFC fighter, a friend of Khabib Islam Makhachev, spoke about the future champion.
“I know that negotiations are going on in battle in April or March of next year. Habib met with representatives of the UFC in Russia. The UFC will probably announce some amount for the organizers. I think he will have a maximum of two fights. It's my opinion. We didn’t talk seriously on this topic, but I think there are a maximum of two, the ceiling is three, ”Sport-Express quotes Makhachev as saying.
“Adesagni and Jones Fight - A Fun Duel”
As for other UFC events, one of the most discussed figures in the leading promotion of the planet is still Israel Adesanya. At the beginning of October, the New Zealander turned out to be stronger than Robert Whittaker and became the new middleweight champion. However, the public is already actively discussing the new rival fighter. Some fans even seriously demand a meeting between Israel and light heavyweight champion John Jones. But White did not confirm this information.
“The fight between Adesanya and Jones is a fun fight, but Paulo Costa will become Israel’s next rival. This is the battle that we are going to organize. But I like the idea of meeting Adesanya with Jones in the future, I won’t lie, ”White quotes BJPenn.com.
The Brazilian, like the New Zealander, does not know defeats in MMA, and in the last fight by the unanimous decision of the judges defeated the most experienced Yoel Romero. Now the 28-year-old native of Belo Horizonte will try to challenge the champion belt at Adesanya.
Another important event in the UFC world was the possible return to octagon of ex-bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt. The American won the organization’s belt in 2016 after defeating Dominic Cruz. But the first defense ended in failure for him. The first loss in his career Cody inflicted TJ Dillashaw. It turned out weaker than Garbrandt and in revenge. And in March, the American suffered a third defeat in a row and cast doubt on his prospects for a strong promotion. But now the ex-champion, having healed all the injuries, is ready to return.
“I torn another tendon in March. This was the second such injury. If my body and mind are ready, then I will return to the beginning of spring. I really look forward to this moment and miss the battles and the octagon. The process of recovery and maintaining health are two different things. In 2020, I will be completely healthy. I can’t wait for it to come and what this year will bring with it. I have to climb to the very top again, and new challenges and obstacles await me on this path, ”Garbrandt quotes MMA Mania.
Dropper and severed finger
In Russia, lovers of mixed martial arts continue to discuss the upcoming fight between Alexander Emelyanenko and Strongman Alexander Koklyaev. However, the latter seriously scared his fans by posting on Instagram a post where he lies under a dropper. It turned out that in this way Koklyaev was only recovering from a cold illness.
And much more serious health problems suffered Croatian MMA fighter Zoran Dod. While harvesting corn in his native village, his finger was cut off to the athlete. The little finger of a man literally pulled into a combine. Despite this, Dod first completed harvesting the corn and only then went to the doctor, but it was already impossible to save his finger.
Incredibly, Zoran did not even cancel his next battle, which will take place in just five days.
“I didn’t even think about transferring the battle. I’m used to much more pain in MMA than now, when the harvester chopped off my finger, ”the media quoted Dod as saying.