Khabib Nurmagomedov previews this weekend's Bellator Champions Series title fight featuring 'the future of the sport'
09/05/2024 09:43 AM
Following his suspension over an accidental consumption of a banned substance, undefeated 17-0 wrecking ball Usman Nurmagomedov finally returns to title action this weekend in the main event of Bellator Champions Series: San Diego.
The undefeated Nurmagomedov, one of many currently competing in MMA promotions worldwide, is set to face fellow Russian star Alexandr Shabliy in what should be a fantastic main event attraction on the West Coast.
Usman Nurmagomedov returns to title action this weekend in San Diego
After his unanimous decision win over Brent Primus at Bellator 300 in October 2023, Usman Nurmagomedov was revealed to have popped for a banned substance β with that title win over the American later overturned to a No Contest.
Despite being suspended by the CSAC for six months, Nurmagomedov was not stripped of the Bellator lightweight title as it was deemed an accidental consumption; he returns to the cage for the first time since that incident against Alexandr Shabliy this weekend.
Whilst the 17-0 Nurmagomedov is unsurprisingly a heavy betting favorite, Shabliy is certainly no slouch; having rattled off nine impressive wins in a row, including a finish over Primus and a UD win over Patricky Pitbull in his last bout.
Khabib Nurmagomedov previews this weekend's Bellator Champions Series title fight
The Bellator Champions Series might have struggled to retain fans' attention of late, but this weekend's event in San Diego is set to be one of their better cards of the year thanks to a solid lineup of stars and meaningful matchups.
Whilst the highly coveted main event spot might come with its own added pressure, the cousin of the Bellator lightweight king and former UFC lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov, is expecting his family member to show out in front of the Pechanga Arena crowd.
"Usman Nurmagomedov is the future of the sport," Khabib previewed on a recent promo trailer for the event.
"Usman is [part of the] younger generation from our gym, he and me, we were trained by my father and now I train him, and we spend like years and years, together in the gym β more than 50 years [combined]."
Since making his professional debut in 2017, Usman Nurmagomedov has gone from strength to strength with three wins via decision, six victories coming by submission, and eight via KO/TKO.
"He always was such a competitor and that's why he's still undefeated," explained coach Khabib: "That's why he is Bellator lightweight world champion, he defends his title and in the next fight, he will prove why he is one of the best in the world right now."
Khabib has been unable to be in the corner of Usman for his past few fights but will be present for this weekend's championship fight in San Diego β in fact, the younger Nurmagomedov is hopeful that it'll be 'The Eagle' himself who wraps the Bellator lightweight title around his waist.
"All the time he was in our corner; even when [he couldn't attend] and we fight, between rounds he would call to corner us and tell them what we need to do in the fight,β he told MMA Junkie: βPeople think he went out and he wouldn't talk about fights, but we all the time talked.
"He just took some time to enjoy with his family, but now he's with us and I'm so happy. I hope he's going to put the belt around my waist. I hope Khabib is going to put the belt on me [Saturday]."
On the title fight itself, the undefeated champion simply stated: "I think I'm going to maul this guy all five rounds, you can watch this [and] enjoy it."
As per the Bellator event page, fans can look forward to 10 solid fights in total.
- Usman NurmagomedovΒ (c) vs. Alexandr Shabliy
- Lorenz Larkin vs. Levan Chokheli
- Douglas Lima vs. Aaron Jeffery
- Yancy Medeiros vs. Jora Ayvazyan
- Sumiko Inaba vs. Mackenzie Stiller
- Jordan Newman vs. Imamshafi Aliev
- Herman Terrado vs. Masayuki Kikuiri
- Bryce Meredith vs. John MaCalolooy
- Josh Hokit vs. Sean Rose
- Aysia Cortez vs. Ashley Thiner
Bellator Champions Series: San Diego goes down live on Saturday, September 7.
