Umar Nurmagomedov explains frustration with UFC 324 win over Deiveson Figueiredo

Umar Nurmagomedov emerged victorious at UFC 324, but he wasn’t exactly thrilled with his opponent’s strategy.

Nurmagomedov and Deiveson Figueiredo shared the Octagon during UFC’s debut on Paramount+. The pivotal bantamweight fight ended in a unanimous decision win for Nurmagomedov. While it was another win for Nurmagomedov, fans weren’t sold on him getting the next crack at bantamweight gold.

Nurmagomedov told reporters during the UFC 324 post-fight press conference that his opponent wasn’t engaging (via MMAFighting).

“I was expecting it’s going to be more hard,” Nurmagomedov said in a post-fight scrum. “It was easier than my sparring partners. Even Manel Kape gave me more hard times in the last month and ‘Tiger’ Magomed Magomedov. I try to do my best, I try to fight like a killer, I try to go ahead, but when you’re opponent’s not engaging it’s a little hard to do something. Like, to show a competitive fight.”

The No. 2-ranked Nurmagomedov is unsure if he will get a crack at Petr Yan for the 135-pound gold. He simply wants to keep fighting.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen next exactly,” Nurmagomedov said. “Just one thing I know, I will ask [for a] fight. Doesn’t matter for the title, doesn’t matter for revenge. It’s going to be with one of the winners of this fight, [Song] or O’Malley, I don’t care. I really don’t care. I just want to be active.”

Nurmagomedov has gone 2-0 since suffering the first loss of his pro MMA career to Merab Dvalishvili. Nurmagomedov bounced back with unanimous decision wins over Mario Bautista and Figueiredo.

Many believe it’s likely that Dvalishvili will get an immediate rematch against Yan for the bantamweight gold. One can’t rule out Sean O’Malley, who defeated Song Yadong in his first victory since his two losses against Dvalishvili. Nurmagomedov is hoping to hear his name get called for the next bantamweight title fight, but he’ll keep taking fights if necessary.

Who do you think Umar Nurmagomedov will fight next? Voice your opinion in the comment section below.