Ultimate Fighting Championship officials were left scrambling for a new co-main event when Khabib Nurmagomedov was forced out of “UFC 209” earlier this year. The lightweight challenger was scheduled to face Tony Ferguson for the interim lightweight championship, but weight-cut issues forced the Russian fighter out of the fight with just twenty-four hours to go until fight night.
The UFC never found a replacement, and the bout was scrapped altogether. As Nurmagomedov continues to recover from the health mishap, rumors started circulating as to what could have caused him to get forced out of the fight.
It was later revealed that had Nurmagomedov been in touch with the UFC’s official doctors, the fight may have taken place. The local hospital pumped Nurmagomedov full of fluids after the kidney issues and he was well overweight for his fight come the time of weigh-ins.
Nurmagomedov’s father recently opened up about the weigh-in drama, telling SPB SovSport:
“The fight with Ferguson broke three times. Twice because of Habib. Once the fight was foiled by Ferguson. Such a series of victories was never for anyone. Ferguson has nine wins, Habib has eight wins. Not only the battles themselves are not lost, Habib did not even have a single round of losing. These are the two best fighters in the UFC at lightweight. But what happened happened. Now he was examined in Germany. It is encouraging that Habib is preparing a fight in September. About the fight with Ferguson, to be honest, the doctor said a very important thing: “Let’s first deal with the health of Habib. And then we’ll talk about the fight. ” Everyone knew what had put Habib out of action. He was poisoned. Usually, he is on a diet. The body can reject some foods.”
Do you believe that Nurmagomedov was poisoned in the days leading up to “UFC 209”? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!
