Athletes
Umar Nurmagomedov Is Ready For His Big Moment
Undefeated Contender Has A Chance To Surge Up The Rankings And Earn A Bantamweight Title Shot, And He’s Ready To Take It With Both Hands
Umar Nurmagomedov stands potentially one win away from a shot at the UFC bantamweight championship, and the undefeated Russian contender is ready to show the world that he’s ready for his big opportunity.
In a sit-down interview with UFC.com, Nurmagomedov opted to conduct the entire interview in English, rather than work through a translator. It showed that, as well as evolving his game in the gym, he’s dedicated to developing his communication skills for a Western audience, too.
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That’s not to say that Nurmagomedov is a hidden talent. His performances inside the UFC Octagon haven’t just spoken volumes about his abilities – it’s screamed from the rooftops.
Nurmagomedov is perfect at 17-0, with his last five wins coming in the UFC, and his performances from his Octagon debut onward have consistently put the division’s elite on notice. Now he’s ready to take that final step and position himself for a shot at the bantamweight title.
Nurmagomedov will take on fellow contender Cory Sandhagen this weekend at UFC Abu Dhabi, with the pair set to go toe to toe in a five-round main event matchup at the Etihad Arena on Saturday night.
And, ahead of the matchup, he looked to be in a relaxed, confident mood ahead of the biggest fight of his career so far.
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“I feel very, very good. I’m feeling excited, and I’m happy for this opportunity,” he said.
“It’s a very important fight for me, and I have prepared for this fight all my life.”
Nurmagomedov’s run of form in the UFC has seen him claim submission finishes of Sergey Morozov and Brian Kelleher, a knockout of Raoni Barcelos and a pair of decision wins against Nate Maness and Bekzat Almakhan.
That slate of victories currently has him listed 10th in the official UFC bantamweight rankings. Now he’s set to face the No. 2-ranked Sandhagen in a matchup that could rocket him to the top of the contenders’ list.
“Cory’s a high level, technical fighter,” said Nurmagomedov.
“He has a good IQ. He’s a good striker, I think he’s one of the best in this division.
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“But I’m ready. If it is a long night, I’m ready, but I will try to finish. I will try to get a submission.”
Nurmagomedov’s relentless approach and seemingly bottomless gas tank make him an incredibly tough test for anyone at 135 pounds. But while he acknowledged his prodigious conditioning, he wasn’t prepared to share how he developed his iron-lunged cardio.
“Haha! That’s a very good question,” he grinned.
“It’s secret! I don’t have any juice, it’s just a secret! I just want to fight and show this, but I don’t want to talk about my cardio, it’s secret!”
Victory for Nurmagomedov is likely to put him next in line for a shot at the UFC bantamweight title, and he had some words for reigning 135-pound champion Sean O’Malley, who had stated that, while Nurmagomedov is good, he thinks Sandhagen is better.
Nurmagomedov reacted with a shrug, and took the opportunity to remind O’Malley of his last big fight prediction involving one of his team.
“He said that Islam (Makhachev) is bad and (Dustin) Poirier is good,” he said.
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“He said ‘Islam is gonna lose,’ but what happened? It means he can’t talk about MMA. (He should) talk about some Reels, talk about TikToks…”
He also said that a future bout with either O’Malley or Merab Dvalishvili would be a very winnable matchup for him, and stated that he is unconcerned about who wins their upcoming bout at UFC 306 in September.
“It doesn’t matter. For me, it doesn’t matter. I don’t care about who’s gonna win,” he said.
Full Fight | Umar Nurmagomedov vs Raoni Barcelos
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Full Fight | Umar Nurmagomedov vs Raoni Barcelos
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“I just want to win this fight and I get the opportunity to beat one of them. It’s two victims of TikTok, and I think they deserve to fight each other.
“I don’t think they are hard fights for me. I think I can find keys to beat both of them. I don’t think they’re very hard, I really don’t.”
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As for his own fight, Nurmagomedov acknowledged that Sandhagen would bring a tough test for him, but he hinted that he thinks he’s got all bases covered ahead of their potential title eliminator matchup
“Hmmm. I think it’s gonna be a hard fight, technical, and he will try to beat me with scores,” he said.
“I think he’s preparing knees, and he’s prepared his wrestling defense. But I’ve prepared a lot of things, too. We’ll see!”
Don't miss a moment of UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs Nurmagomedov, live from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on August 3, 2024. Prelims start at 12pm ET/9am PT, while the main card kicks off live on ABC, ESPN & ESPN+ at 3pm ET/12pm PT.
