Despite the fact he’s set to face Tony Ferguson at the fifth time of asking in one of the most eagerly-anticipated fights of 2020 so far, [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] found himself having to fend off questions about a fight he seemingly has little interest in: a rematch with [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag].
Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, threw a plot twist into the rematch narrative storyline by suggesting there has been a $100 million bid from Saudi Arabia to host a rematch between the pair. But Nurmagomedov (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC) questioned the wisdom of such a bid and suggested that the amount of money on the table wouldn’t sway his decision.
“Why do I need that kind of money?” he asked reporters during a press conference in Russia on Tuesday (via RT Sport). “There are so many organizations. For example, there’s not only football for the blind, there’s sambo and other sports. Let (the UFC) give it to them if they don’t know what to do with the money. But giving me $100 million for me to beat up that idiot again? I don’t think that’s rational.”
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Instead of talking about McGregor, Nurmagomedov would much rather discuss his upcoming fight with former interim champion Ferguson at UFC 249.
“I have a fight on April 18 – a very serious fight,” he said. “For the past month and a half, I’ve been consistently training day and night. I’ve gotten myself in good shape to where I’m supposed to be 70 days before a fight. I feel great.
“What’ll happen after the fight, no one knows. I don’t worry about it. That’s what (the UFC) want. I’m surprised that people even question me about a rematch. It seems that people want to continue the festivities after that fight.
“Everyone saw what happened in the octagon (against McGregor). I controlled the fight every step of the way. I did everything I wanted to him. He even gave up. How can we even discuss a rematch? We can only talk about continuing the festivities and making money. The question is, do I want that? I am focused on Tony Ferguson.”
As for the fight with Ferguson, Nurmagomedov admitted he wasn’t sure exactly how it would pan out stylistically. But the Russian star said he would be ready for every eventuality against the unorthodox, unpredictable American.
“It’s impossible to predict a fight (and) what direction it’ll go in – that’s very difficult,” he said. “I never worry about an opponent’s actions – what he’ll do and how he’ll do it. I always study an opponent’s strengths and try to deflect them when I get in the cage.
“You, however, never saw a cut on me – not even a black eye. So I don’t think it’ll be a problem. My head and skin are good. Nobody ever cut me, and I don’t think I’ll get one that’s so bad that the judges stop the fight. It’ll be interesting. I’ve never been hit in a way that left a black eye, so he’s got a task for himself.”
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