“I haven’t talked to Khabib [Nurmagomedov] but we’ll get it figured out,” UFC President Dana White told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto following the UFC 234 pre-fight press conference. “I don’t know what he wants or what he’s looking for right now. We haven’t even tried. But we’ll get it figured out.
“Yeah, it probably would [make an interim title necessary if Khabib sits out nine-months for his teammates]. It probably would. Yeah. We’ll see how it plays out. I haven’t heard Khabib say any of that. He hasn’t said to me. So when I hear these things that come back from reporters, or fans, or whatever, ‘Oh, I heard this and that,’ … I haven’t heard that.
“He hasn’t said that to me, so we’ll deal with it when we deal with it.”
For the current reigning undefeated UFC lightweight champion of the world, Khabib Nurmagomedov, he won’t be eligible to return to action until April at the earliest following his suspension from the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
However, due to his teammates Zubaira Tukhugov and Abubakar Nurmagomedov’s suspensions, he has said he isn’t willing to return until they’re suspensions are up as well. Meaning he could go a whole year without fighting as he is eying a fight in November at Madison Square Garden next, according to his manager.
Because of that, it would create a hole at the top of the 155-pound division that would seemingly get filled with yet another interim title.
Whether or not that will actually happen remains to be seen, but if one thing is for sure, the two most likely candidates to fight over the title would be the red-hot Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier and the former interim champ Tony Ferguson.
Regardless, it all comes down to Khabib Nurmagomedov.
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 2/8/2019
UFC star Israel Adesanya has given his thoughts on rival Alex Pereira and the journey they’ve been on together.
For the longest time now, Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira have been spoken about in association with one another. They fought each other twice in kickboxing and, so far, have battled twice in mixed martial arts. Across those four collisions, Pereira currently holds a 3-1 advantage. However, ‘Stylebender’ did get his hand raised in their most recent fight, knocking ‘Poatan’ out in vicious fashion.
UFC commentator Michael Bisping has issued a warning to Michael Chandler ahead of his showdown with Conor McGregor.
At UFC 303, it’s finally happening. Michael Chandler and Conor McGregor will lock horns in a contest we’ve been waiting to see for well over a year. For multiple reasons, it hadn’t come to fruition – but now, it appears as if we’re on the verge of seeing it happen.
Former World’s Strongest Man Eddie Hall has broken Alex Pereira’s punch record at the UFC Performance Institute.
As we all know, Alex Pereira is an absolute monster. The man known as ‘Poatan’ has achieved some incredible things in kickboxing as well as mixed martial arts. Right now, he stands tall as the reigning UFC light heavyweight champion.
UFC fighter Ketlen Vieira has called out Kayla Harrison for allegedly turning down a fight against her at UFC 303.
At UFC 300, Kayla Harrison made a real statement. In her debut for the promotion, she dominated and submitted Holly Holm at the landmark event. Since then, many have wondered how long it’s going to take before they give her a championship opportunity.
UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier feels the unorthodox start times at UFC 304 should be a significant part of fight camps for those competing on the card.
UFC 304 marks the promotion’s return to the UK on July 27th in Manchester. The card is expected to include UFC titleholders Tom Aspinall and Leon Edwards as the main attractions.
Chael Sonnen feels that a Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane matchup at UFC 304 could be potentially disastrous for the matchmakers.
Aspinall is expected to return to defend the interim UFC heavyweight title at UFC 304 in July. As of this writing, his intended return hasn’t been announced, but it’s expected to be shared in the coming weeks.
UFC Hall of Famer José Aldo is a loyal ally of Conor McGregor almost a full decade after their intense rivalry inside the Octagon.
Aldo will make his UFC return at UFC 301 next weekend in Rio de Janeiro. He’ll return to the bantamweight division to face Jonathan Martinez in the UFC 301 co-main event.
Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez is set to go to trial later this year.
The former heavyweight hasn’t competed in the cage since a first-round knockout loss to Francis Ngannou in 2019. After that defeat, Cain Velasquez retired from MMA but has remained active in the world of professional wrestling. That was until early 2022 when the former UFC champion was arrested for attempted murder.
