There’s perhaps nothing MMA fans love to do more than play fantasy match-maker, and it appears Khabib Nurmagomedov is no different.
In an interview with MatchTV, the UFC lightweight champion was asked what the one fantasy fight he would love to see was. With endless possibilities to choose from, Nurmagomedov went with one of the great ‘What-Ifs” of the sport (H/T BJPenn via Lenta).
“If just a fantasy, then I would take Brock Lesnar — a heavyweight. And it would be possible to make him a fight with Fedor Emelianenko in Russia,” Nurmagomedov said. “It would be interesting to organize a fight between the stars of Russian and American MMA. By the way, anything can happen.”
In their primes, Lesnar and Emelianenko were regarded as the greatest heavyweights on the planet. Lesnar was a former All-American wrestler in university, who came into the world of MMA after a lengthy run in professional wrestling. After coming up short in his UFC debut, he would go on to eventually beat Randy Couture for the title and defend it multiple times. His dominance combined with his celebrity from his time with the WWE made him one of the biggest stars in UFC history. Emelianenko went on an unprecedented 28-fight unbeaten streak while competing for Rings, Pride, Affliction and Strikeforce in the early-2000s. Often the smaller man, ‘The Last Emperor’ used his background in sambo to overcome the size deficit and become regarded as one of MMA’s all-time greats. UFC president Dana White reportedly tried numerous times to sign the Russian superstar during Lesnar’s run as heavyweight champion, but alas, it was never meant to be.
With his fighting career seemingly behind him, Khabib Nurmagomedov will have plenty of time to act as an actual matchmaker for his upstart Eagle Fighting Championship. He has said he hopes the promotion can serve as a launchpad for fighters to the UFC.
Who would win between Lesnar and Emelianenko? What is the one fight you would like to make?