March 29, 2024

Morning Report: Khabib Nurmagomedov calls for fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr: ‘50-0 vs. 27-0. Two guys never lose. Let’s go.’

Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

In the last few years, following Conor McGregor’s ascent, the UFC has had noticeable issues managing their transcendent superstar as well as the first man to beat him in the UFC. Now they might have another budding troublemaker on their hands.

After dismantling McGregor last week at UFC 229, Khabib Nurmagomedov flew into the crowd and attacked McGregor’s team, sparking a brawl that became the major talking point coming out of by far the UFC’s most successful event ever. The brawl also sparked a series of consequences that could become a headache for the UFC in the near future.

For one, the Nevada Athletic Commission has withheld Nurmagomedov’s $2M fight purse pending an investigation into the incident, a fact which obviously puts a strain on the UFC’s relationship with Nurmagomedov, especially since the UFC also withdrew Nurmagomedov’s training partnerZubaira Tukhugov from his scheduled fight with McGregor’s training partner Artem Lobov at the end of this month. Tukhugov was among the members directly involved in the brawl and even punched McGregor during the chaos. Despite this fact though, Nurmagomedov did not take kindly to the UFC hurting his teammate and subsequently threatened to leave the organization.

If Nurmagomedov does end up having to make good on his ultimatum, there are no shortages of options for the man who is now arguably one of the biggest stars in the UFC. Rapper 50 Cent almost immediately offered to pay Khabib “$2 million cash” to sign with Bellator but Nurmagomedov may have his sites set a little higher.

In a video posted to social media by DeJuan Blake, Nurmagomedov is ringside with Mayweather Promotions CEO, Leonard Ellerbe, and discusses a possible superfight between himself and Mayweather.

“Hey, let’s go, Floyd,” Nurmagomedov said. “We have to fight now. 50-0 vs. 27-0. Two guys never lose. Let’s go. Why not? Because in the jungle, only one king. Only one king. Of course, I am the king because he cannot drop McGregor but I drop him easily. Let’s go!”

Mayweather fought McGregor in the second biggest Pay-Per-View event of all time, easily outboxing the former two-division champion before stopping him in the tenth round. However, McGregor proved a tougher out than most anticipated and Mayweather was never able to drop McGregor, despite hurting him badly on the feet. In contrast, Nurmagomedov became the first man to knock McGregor down in competition when a lightning fast overhand right put McGregor on his but in the second round of their fight.

For his part, the idea of another superfight for Mayweather, this time with a man known primarily for his wrestling acumen, seems mighty enticing for Ellerbe.

“You gonna get some of that work, baby!” said Ellerbe in response to Nurmagomedov’s call out.

While it’s always nice to have options, first Nurmagomedov has to resolve his issues with the NAC who have temporarily suspended Khabib pending a full investigation of the UFC 229 brawl.

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