For the past week, Khabib Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, has spoken publicly about being reluctant to allow lightweight title contender, Tony Ferguson a shot at Khabib’s gold next.
However, it appears there may be some cross of opinion between Abdelaziz and Khabib. As per the Team Dagestan Twitter account, when Khabib was questioned by a slightly disappointed fan, he seems to suggest the breakdown in the match up with Ferguson was a choice Abdelaziz rather than his own:
Although brief, the Tweet seems to suggest that Khabib may not be 100% happy with the decision to avoid the fight with “El Cucuy” and was more so a choice of Abdelaziz.
In the lead up to UFC 229, the UFC’s lightweight division had regained hope in respect to potential fights after a previous year of injuries and hiatus’. With the unfortunate turn of events post-fight after Khabib’s win and the subsequent pending trial with the NSAC, the wheels have again grinded to a halt in the 155lb division.
Now, discussions about who fights next after the trial and who deserves it more are aplenty in the MMA community. This development from Khabib adds further ambiguity in matchmaking at the top of the division.
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