LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] won’t get sucked into the narrative about [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag]’s state of mind as time winds down to one of the biggest fights in UFC history.
Nurmagomedov (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC), the UFC lightweight champion, was just a few feet from Ferguson (25-3 MMA, 15-1 UFC) on Friday as they participated in a news conference to promote UFC 249, which takes place April 18 and sees the pair clash for the title in the pay-per-view main event.
Although Ferguson is unique when it comes to everything from his personality to his preparation to his in-cage fighting style, some of his behaviors of late have been unusual even by his standards, especially the March 2019 reports of his family expressing concern for his well being. Ferguson shut down a question about his mental health at the news conference, and Nurmagomedov on Saturday was asked for his perspective.
Nurmagomedov didn’t want to delve into Ferguson’s personal life, especially because he is preparing to try to “smash” his challenger in a matter of weeks.
“Nothing personal here, I don’t want to talk about his problems – family stuff, mental stuff. This is his problem,” Nurmagomedov told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at Dominance MMA media day. “I don’t want to talk about his problems. Everybody has problems. Nobody is safe. If he need help we have to help him, but we’re going to fight next month. I don’t want to think about my opponent and talk about his mental health.”
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The press conference between Nurmagomedov and Ferguson got quite heated. Both fighters went after each other in a personal way, and there was no shortage of tension.
Nurmagomedov and Ferguson have quite the history, with UFC 249 representing the fifth time they’ve been scheduled to fight each other. Both men have pulled out of two matchups each, but Nurmagomedov said he’s holding out hope the bout finally happens.
The news conference was perhaps the most intense encounter between the rivals, but Nurmagomedov said he viewed it all as good fun. He’s anticipating the fight as much as anyone and hopes to deliver the treat the fight world is waiting for.
“I think it was fun because Tony’s funny guy,” Nurmagomedov said. “Next month, fighting, we hope we will be fighting, and this is very interesting fight. Dream fight for fans, for you as media, for fighters everywhere. Like fan, I love this fight with Tony.”
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