In 2020, ahead of his UFC 249 fight against Tony Ferguson, Khabib Nurmagomedov made a bold claim: he could defeat boxing legend Floyd Mayweather in a 12-round hybrid fight. The undefeated UFC lightweight champion had been campaigning for a crossover bout with Mayweather since his dominant victory over Conor McGregor in 2018.
Nurmagomedov proposed a unique format for the fight: 11 rounds of boxing followed by a single round of MMA. The Russian believed that Mayweather’s boxing skills would be neutralized in the final round, where he would have the advantage in grappling and ground-and-pound.
Speaking to TMZ, ‘The Eagle’ said:
“I’m not a boxer, not just a wrestler. I’m an MMA fighter. If he’s interested, my father talked about it before. [We can do] 11 rounds of boxing and 1 round of MMA. 11 rounds of 3 minutes before the last round, the 12th round, five minutes of MMA.”
He added:
“I don’t think he can knock me out in 11 rounds. What’s he going to do in the last round? Five minutes with me [and] I’m going to take him down and maul this guy. What’s he going to do? His boxing is very good but he can’t knock me out.”
Unfortunately, neither the Ferguson fight nor the Mayweather fight ever materialized. Nurmagomedov ultimately retired from combat sport following his successful title defense against Justin Gaethje at UFC 254.
Dustin Poirier’s UFC 302 custom fight kit finds buyer in Khabib Nurmagomedov
Dustin Poirier’s custom floral shorts from his recent UFC 302 fight against Islam Makhachev have found a new home. The former lightweight title contender revealed that his former foe, Khabib Nurmagomedov, purchased the fight kit for a substantial sum of $30,000.
Poirier had put the fight kit up for auction on eBay to raise funds for his charity, The Good Fight Foundation. However, the winning bidder failed to pay for the item, prompting Nurmagomedov to step in. The Russian fighter’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, contacted Poirier to complete the purchase.
The funds raised from the sale will go towards the charity’s programs, including their annual “Back to School” event.
