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Five-round fight scheduled
Nurmagomedov is scheduled to compete against Cory Sandhagen in a five-round bantamweight fight at UFC Abu Dhabi on Aug. 3, per Damon Martin of MMAFighting.com.
ANALYSIS
Nurmagomedov and Sandhagen were scheduled to compete against each other at UFC on ESPN 50 about a year ago, but the former withdrew because of a shoulder injury. While the Russian bantamweight fought Bekzat Almakhan, Sandhagen was recovering from a tricep injury. Both are healthy now, hence this five-round headliner.
Nurmagomedov and Sandhagen were scheduled to compete against each other at UFC on ESPN 50 about a year ago, but the former withdrew because of a shoulder injury. While the Russian bantamweight fought Bekzat Almakhan, Sandhagen was recovering from a tricep injury. Both are healthy now, hence this five-round headliner.
Survives early scare in easy win
Nurmagomedov defeated Bekzat Almakhan via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-26, 30-26) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
Literally no one wants to fight Nurmagomedov, and this is the exact reason why. Making his UFC debut, Almakhan scored a knockdown moments after the opening bell rang. To say it was all Umar the rest of the way would be the understatement of the century. After recovering, Nurmagomedov landed all five of his takedown attempts for 11:26 worth of control time, closing with a 145-5 (that is not a misprint) edge in total strikes landed. The grappling game is simply on another level. Umar is now 5-0 in the UFC, with wins over Almakhan, Raoni Barcelos, Nate Maness, Brian Kelleher and Sergey Morozov. The company is going to have to figure something out soon here, because a guy with this type of ability is going to destroy everyone except the very top of the food chain at 135 pounds.
Literally no one wants to fight Nurmagomedov, and this is the exact reason why. Making his UFC debut, Almakhan scored a knockdown moments after the opening bell rang. To say it was all Umar the rest of the way would be the understatement of the century. After recovering, Nurmagomedov landed all five of his takedown attempts for 11:26 worth of control time, closing with a 145-5 (that is not a misprint) edge in total strikes landed. The grappling game is simply on another level. Umar is now 5-0 in the UFC, with wins over Almakhan, Raoni Barcelos, Nate Maness, Brian Kelleher and Sergey Morozov. The company is going to have to figure something out soon here, because a guy with this type of ability is going to destroy everyone except the very top of the food chain at 135 pounds.
Return bout scheduled
Nurmagomedov (shoulder) is scheduled to compete against Bekzat Almakhan in a bantamweight fight at UFC Vegas 87 on March 2, per Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
For his next fight, Nurmagomedov is scheduled to compete against a UFC debutant. This is a relatively steep downgrade for the undefeated bantamweight, as he was previously expected to fight top-five contender Cory Sandhagen before undergoing shoulder surgery. The opponent is possibly not a downgrade in opponent quality either, considering Almakhan is 17-1 with 15 finishes, 13 of them KO/TKOs. Still, having previously proven himself worthy of fighting a top-five bantamweight contender, Nurmagedov still has high upside to dispatch his next opponent and re-establish himself as a legitimate threat in the division.
For his next fight, Nurmagomedov is scheduled to compete against a UFC debutant. This is a relatively steep downgrade for the undefeated bantamweight, as he was previously expected to fight top-five contender Cory Sandhagen before undergoing shoulder surgery. The opponent is possibly not a downgrade in opponent quality either, considering Almakhan is 17-1 with 15 finishes, 13 of them KO/TKOs. Still, having previously proven himself worthy of fighting a top-five bantamweight contender, Nurmagedov still has high upside to dispatch his next opponent and re-establish himself as a legitimate threat in the division.
Hurts shoulder, won't fight Sandhagen
Nurmagomedov withdrew Wednesday from his Aug. 5 bantamweight bout with Cory Sandhagen at the UFC's event in Nashville after suffering a shoulder injury that will require surgery, Marc Raimondi of ESPN.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Nurmagomedov, who holds a career 16-0-0 MMA record, has now had five of his last nine scheduled UFC bouts cancelled. He most recently competed in January, when he scored a first-round victory over Raoni Barcelos. According to his manager, Nurmagomedov is scheduled to undergo surgery next week, and a timeline for the 27-year-old's return to competition likely won't be established until after the procedure is completed.
Nurmagomedov, who holds a career 16-0-0 MMA record, has now had five of his last nine scheduled UFC bouts cancelled. He most recently competed in January, when he scored a first-round victory over Raoni Barcelos. According to his manager, Nurmagomedov is scheduled to undergo surgery next week, and a timeline for the 27-year-old's return to competition likely won't be established until after the procedure is completed.
Next fight set
Nurmagomedov will take on Cory Sandhagen in bantamweight bout at a UFC event in Nashville on Aug. 5, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports Thursday.
ANALYSIS
Nurmagomedov has mostly cruised through his first four UFC matches. His most recent victory came at the expense of Raoni Barcelos, who he quickly disposed of with a left hook in the first round of a fight back in January. He'll look to remain undefeated as a pro MMA fighter against Sandhagen, who is also coming off a victory. Sandhagen, who currently holds the No. 4 spot in the UFC's bantamweight rankings and has previously competed for a title, represents Nurmagomedov's toughest test to date. A decisive victory for Umar here could put him within a fight or two of his own shot at UFC gold.
Nurmagomedov has mostly cruised through his first four UFC matches. His most recent victory came at the expense of Raoni Barcelos, who he quickly disposed of with a left hook in the first round of a fight back in January. He'll look to remain undefeated as a pro MMA fighter against Sandhagen, who is also coming off a victory. Sandhagen, who currently holds the No. 4 spot in the UFC's bantamweight rankings and has previously competed for a title, represents Nurmagomedov's toughest test to date. A decisive victory for Umar here could put him within a fight or two of his own shot at UFC gold.