Khabib Nurmagomedov’s next move is up in the air. The No. 1 ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight was supposed to battle Tony Ferguson last night (March 4) for the interim 155-pound gold. Those plans were dashed when “The Eagle” fell ill due to weight cutting issues. He and “El Cucuy” were pulled from the […]
Khabib Nurmagomedov’s next move is up in the air. The No. 1 ranked Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight was supposed to battle Tony Ferguson last night (March 4) for the interim 155-pound gold. Those plans were dashed when “The Eagle” fell ill due to weight cutting issues. He and “El Cucuy” were pulled from the […]
It wasn’t the most crowd-pleasing bout in UFC history, but welterweight champion Tyron Woodley retained his title over Stephen Thompson in a heavily questioned majority decision result in the main event of last night’s (Sat., March 4, 2017) UFC 209 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. After the fight’s results were announced, fans and media
It wasn’t the most crowd-pleasing bout in UFC history, but welterweight champion Tyron Woodley retained his title over Stephen Thompson in a heavily questioned majority decision result in the main event of last night’s (Sat., March 4, 2017) UFC 209 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
After the fight’s results were announced, fans and media members began to discuss the result, with many unsure how Woodley could win a decision while mostly moving backwards and throwing little volume while doing so for at least three rounds. UFC President Dana White agrees with them, as he told FOX Sports after the fight he had it scored in favor of ‘Wonderboy’:
“I had it 3-2. ‘Wonderboy.’”
When asked if he thought the fight might turn out to be another draw when the strange scores once again came up, White clarified the thought had never crossed his mind. He noted that one of the cageside judges scored the fifth and final round, where Woodley did do some heavy damage to Thompson, a dominant 10-8 for the champ, something White found to be ludicrous:
“I didn’t think it was gonna be a draw; I mean, from the fight that I watched, I had it 3-2 ‘Wonderboy,’ and one of the judges scored the last round 10-8, which is insane.”
But regardless of how he felt the fight should have been scored, White had to accept that Woodley won no matter what, and the fans will have to as well. Typically vague with the direction of the UFC’s plans for the deep welterweight division, White only confirmed that the win, which was Woodley’s first official defense, didn’t help his case too much:
“Tyron’s the champ, he won tonight. But you know, listen, me, the fans, everybody else – we’re not judges. The judges called him the winner tonight so he’s the winner. So we’ll see where we go from here. Listen, this fight didn’t help his case in any way, shape, or form. But I don’t know, we’ll see what happens from here.”
A ton of people have been speaking their mind on the fact that the co-main event of UFC 209, Khabib Nurmagomedov versus Tony Ferguson, should be the main attraction of the show. Whether or not you agree with that point, the truth of the matter is that this fight is certainly one for the ages as both men have looked nigh invincible during their UFC tenure. What’s more, one of these men will have to experience the bitter taste of defeat as they head for a collision course that could be one of the greatest lightweight scraps in the sport’s history.
A ton of people have been speaking their mind on the fact that the co-main event of UFC 209, Khabib Nurmagomedov versus Tony Ferguson, should be the main attraction of the show. Whether or not you agree with that point, the truth of the matter is that this fight is certainly one for the ages as both men have looked nigh invincible during their UFC tenure. What’s more, one of these men will have to experience the bitter taste of defeat as they head for a collision course that could be one of the greatest lightweight scraps in the sport’s history.
Khabib Nurmagomedov is an absolute savage. To neglect to mention the fact would be remiss on my part. Since entering the UFC he’s looked pretty damn impressive. He capped off his twenty-fourth straight win with a domination of Michael Johnson. What makes Khabib so dangerous? His indomitable will that sees the Dagestan native push the pace, push towards his opponents with strikes, then wrap his arms around his prey where the thrashing begins. While his striking may not be polished, Khabib has found a way to make it effective. He’ll throw a standard one-two, then instantly explode forward with a hook in order to enter into the clinch and secure a takedown by any means.
Whether it’s a judo throw, double or single leg, once Khabib is in that clinch position you either need to spin off and push away the head or find yourself with your back to the mat.
On the other side of the equation we have Tony Ferguson who brings a much more balanced skill set to the table. He has striking, he has wrestling, and great submission abilities. His gas tank seems to be endless and he pushes the pace with consistent striking combinations from lead uppercuts to sharp low leg kicks. Ferguson also enjoys switching stances in the middle of combo strings to find the inside and outside angles in hopes exploiting openings. He’ll throw a cross from orthodox stance, switch to south paw where he’ll through a rear uppercut, back to orthodox for a rear leg kick to a spinning back fist. His striking is at once technical and chaotic and always packs a punch. But his he’s more controlled than his foe in that he uses fundamentals.
His jab is sharp and long and he uses it as a legit weapon as well as a range finder which adds variety to his striking arsenal. Ferguson will do well to keep Khabib on the end of his punches and if the Sambo specialist does try to shoot for the takedown, a traditional needs to be at the ready and if he can’t manage that, his nifty forward roll needs to be on hand to create a scramble.
I’ve always said that Ferguson would be a tougher match up for Conor McGregor if the legit lightweight champ ever decides to come back and defend his title. That’s not to say that Khabib wouldn’t give McGregor trouble, but the pace that Ferguson can put on people, coupled with his size, striking, chin, and submission game, makes him a terrible match up for the lightweight champ. That’s not to say Khabib can’t grind McGregor into the cage, land a takedown and smash him on the ground. Either way, we still have to see Ferguson and Khabib do the damn thing at UFC 209. I’ll be sure to watching with a whiskey in hand and a smile plastered across my face.
Who do you think wins the interim lightweight title: Khabib Nurmagomedov or Tony Ferguson?
Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
Top lightweight contenders Khabib “The Eagle” Nurmagomedov and Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson will face off in a pivotal interim lightweight title bout in the co-main event of this weekend’s (Sat., March 4, 2017) UFC 209 from Las Vegas, Nevada, with a shot at reigning champion Conor McGregor seemingly hanging in the balance. Ferguson is riding
Top lightweight contenders Khabib “The Eagle” Nurmagomedov and Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson will face off in a pivotal interim lightweight title bout in the co-main event of this weekend’s (Sat., March 4, 2017) UFC 209 from Las Vegas, Nevada, with a shot at reigning champion Conor McGregor seemingly hanging in the balance.
Ferguson is riding an incredible nine fight win streak and he plans to keep that going against Nurmagomedov. In fact, Ferguson is planning to ‘slice and dice’ “The Eagle” before finishing him, which will leave no need for a rematch in his opinion:
“(Expletive) no (there won’t ever be a rematch),” Ferguson told MMAJunkie at today’s UFC 209 open workouts. “Not after I finish him the way I’m going to finish him. It’s different. I’m going to slice and dice him. With the new rules as far as the UFC goes, he’s got something else coming for him. I’m keeping these (elbows) sharp like medal graters. There’s sparks flying, baby.”
While the two 155-pound titans have traded barbs in the media leading up to the bout, Ferguson admits that he has nothing but respect for Nurmagomedov, although he also said that the two have ‘beef’ inside the cage:
“You can love somebody without liking them,” Ferguson said. “I love Khabib, man. He’s my brother in arms. We’re all here, we’re all for one. I got peace with him, but inside there we got beef. We got to squash this (expletive). I’m tired of him, man. He’s a bully, and I’m going to shut him up, but I got respect for him, his father and his whole camp.”
Who do you expect to come out on top in ‘Sin City’?
Episode three of UFC 209 Embedded has surfaced. The official YouTube channel of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) pushed out another episode of the Embedded series. This time, Stephen Thompson is in New York City fulfilling media obligations. We also see Khabib Nurmagomedov receive therapy, Tony Ferguson completing a gym session, and Tyron Woodley training […]
Episode three of UFC 209 Embedded has surfaced. The official YouTube channel of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) pushed out another episode of the Embedded series. This time, Stephen Thompson is in New York City fulfilling media obligations. We also see Khabib Nurmagomedov receive therapy, Tony Ferguson completing a gym session, and Tyron Woodley training […]
Tyron Woodley and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson are set to clash on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas for the UFC welterweight championship. The fight promises to be a close contest between two of the welterweight division’s brightest stars. Woodley and Thompson fought to a thrilling majority draw decision in their first fight, […]
Tyron Woodley and Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson are set to clash on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas for the UFC welterweight championship. The fight promises to be a close contest between two of the welterweight division’s brightest stars. Woodley and Thompson fought to a thrilling majority draw decision in their first fight, […]
