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I guess September is too far away after all.
Reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is planning to make his Octagon return much sooner than expected, which means the winner of Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje could be back in action as early as July.
“El Cucuy” and “The Highlight” are going to war for the interim 155-pound strap while Nurmagomedov is stuck under quarantine in Russia, and it sounds like “The Eagle” is getting tired of all the complaints from UFC fans (and fighters) who accuse him of stalling.
“I can fight anytime, Ramadan finishes May 23,” Nurmagomedov wrote on Instagram (via MMA Junkie). “July I’m gonna be ready. Stop talking about me, this is coronatime, when Khabibtime comes I smash all of them.”
The UFC 249 pay-per-view (PPV) event takes place this Sat. night (May 9, 2020) on ESPN+ from inside VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida, and also features the co-main event between 135-pound champion Henry Cejudo and ex-bantamweight titleholder Dominick Cruz.
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 249 fight card RIGHT HERE, starting with the ESPN+/Fight Pass “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ESPN+/ESPN at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
To check out the latest and greatest UFC 249: “Ferguson vs. Gaethje” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.