Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has begun negotiating his UFC return. Combate’s Marcelo Barone and Raphael Marinho report that the UFC is working on Nurmagomeodv vs interim lightweight champion Justin Gaethje at UFC 253 on September 19. It was reported by MMAJunkie that UFC President Dana White was planning the fight for September on May 19. Nurmagomedov’s last fight was a submission win over Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 on September 7, 2019.
Nurmagomeov has had a rough 2020. He was scheduled to fight Tony Ferguson in their long-awaited matchup at UFC 249 on April 18. The card was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic and rescheduled for May 9. Nurmagomedov was unable to fight due to miscommunications with the UFC on the event location. It was reported by Russian media Sports-Express that Nurmagomedov’s father Abdulmanap suffered health complications after having pneumonia. Throughout all his struggles this year, Nurmagomedov has been training and plans to successfully defend his championship.
Gaethje is coming off the biggest win of his career by defeating Ferguson at UFC 249 on May 9. He became the first person to finish Ferguson by TKO to win the interim lightweight championship. Gaethje is also on a four-fight win streak and has finished all four opponents. With a great wrestling background and explosive knockout power, Gaethje presents an interesting challenge for Nurmagomedov.
