Khabib Nurmagomedov had everything on the line at Saturday’s UFC 205.
Dominance and bad luck have defined the Russian grappler’s career. Catastrophic injuries have consistently weighed down big wins, and there have been multiple occasions where it seemed as though his career would be over.
When it finally seemed like he would catch a break and receive a title shot, it was pulled away from him. Not only that, but he also came to the likely accurate conclusion that UFC decision-makers were using him to drive down the price tag for UFC 205’s Eddie Alvarez vs. Conor McGregor main event, per Anton Tabuena of Bloody Elbow.
With a chip on his shoulder to match his surgically repaired knees, he was added to Saturday’s card in New York and faced an ugly situation: Either defeat the tricky Michael Johnson and hope the rota fortunae works in his favor for his next fight or lose and be forgotten in the hyper-competitive lightweight division.
He gave the UFC brass a strong reminder of who he is in his win over Johnson at Madison Square Garden by third-round submission.
The first round opened with Johnson’s quickness and reach advantage on display, as he stalked Nurmagomedov across the cage and flicked his dangerous left hand. Nurmagomedov absorbed a fair bit of punishment before slipping underneath a punch and shooting for a takedown, landing in side control.
Johnson did little more than survive, absorbing ground-and-pound for minutes on end as Nurmagomedov transitioned from dominant position to dominant position with little difficulty. The fight lasted to the horn, but the outcome wasn’t in doubt.
The second round saw a woozy Johnson look to reassert himself as the better striker but visibly struggle to deal with the shellacking he took in the first round. Nurmagomedov, wisely, began shooting for takedowns with little interest in chancing anything else. Johnson found himself on his back with an impossibly heavy blanket and could not do anything to answer Nurmagomedov‘s grappling offense.
By the third, Johnson was spent. A hard uppercut landed on him early, and another takedown followed. Seemingly tired of working Johnson over with punches, Nurmagomedov locked up a merciful kimura, forcing a tap at 2:31 of Round 3.
It was a lopsided beating that bordered on being uncomfortable, and it was precisely what was required for Nurmagomedov to keep his place among the lightweight elite. With Tony Ferguson sitting in the No. 1 spot on the UFC lightweight rankings and a rubber match with Nate Diaz remaining an inevitability for McGregor, the Eagle needed to show he was still the man who mauled Rafael Dos Anjos in 2014.
At UFC 205, he showed he isn’t that man. He’s a better, fiercer one.
Nurmagomedov didn’t use the post-fight interview to call out the current champ, though. He had his eyes set on the money fight. “I want to stay humble, but I have to talk,” he said, per Brian Campbell of ESPN.com. “Ireland only has six million people; Russia has 150 million. I want to fight your chicken! Let’s go,” he said, referring to McGregor.
It’s unclear whether he will get the title shot or a crack at McGregor. What’s crystal-clear is whoever faces Nurmagomedov next needs to be scared. Very scared.
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