It would appear that newly crowned UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov may already have an opponent in mind for his first title defense.
UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor and interim title holder Tony Ferguson were each stripped of their belts at the start of the main event for UFC 223. The UFC made the decision so that Khabib Nurmagomedov could face off against Al Iaquinta, a fighter that was not ranked within the top ten of the division, for the undisputed title.
Nurmagomedov put on a dominant performance over his opponent, ultimately earning a unanimous decision victory over Iaquinta for the belt. Speaking on the latest edition of The MMA Hour, lightweight contender Dustin Poirier revealed that Nurmagomedov’s manager had reached out to him with interest in a title defense match up with the fighter.
Dustin Poirier was riding a stunning fight of the year contender victory over Justin Gaethje from UFC on FOX 29 when he spoke on the highly acclaimed show, revealing that he is now potentially in Nurmagomedov’s sights.
“I think it’s pretty good chances, Tony’s timeline is nine months and we got to see if Conor comes back, maybe he doesn’t.” Poirier said. “Khabib’s manager reached out to me and told me I’m the next guy in line and they want to fight me.”
