Abubakar Nurmagomedov – Syndication Server

Rare video shows little Khabib Nurmagomedov and his cousins as kids having a laugh at breakfast

Khabib and his cousins look so innocent, you’d never think they went on to be forces in the cage.

Long before [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] became one of the greatest UFC champions of all time, before he was a dominant force, before he took down opponents and bludgeoned them with ground-and-pound, he was a kid.

It’s easy to forget that the fighters we watch go to battle inside the cage, at one point, they were just kids who enjoyed being kids.

That’s what makes this video of Khabib and his fellow fighter cousins – [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] and [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] – sitting around and having a laugh at the breakfast table while being filmed as children so fascinating to watch.

Check this out (via Instagram):

https://www.instagram.com/p/C3_M4lpSzg0/?igsh=cXg0bjlnd3RlNXV0

Family is so important to Khabib. It’s why he retired while still in his prime, making a promise to his mother that he would no longer fight after the untimely death of his father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov.

Seeing this video of Khabib at a family gathering surrounded by cousins reaffirms that sentiment.

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Javier Mendez reveals Abubakar Nurmagomedov popped his knee early in UFC on ESPN 45 loss

It appears Abubakar Nurmagomedov had to battle some early adversity at UFC on ESPN 45.

It appears [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] had to battle some early adversity at UFC on ESPN 45.

Nurmagomedov (17-4-1 MMA, 2-2 UFC) was edged out in a split decision loss to Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos (24-7 MMA, 10-3 UFC) in this past Saturday’s main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Coach Javier Mendez revealed that Nurmagomedov hurt his knee in Round 1, but decided to battle through it. Nurmagomedov was able to win Round 2 on two of the judges’ scorecards, but lost Round 3 on all three.

“It was such a close and competitive fight,” Mendez said on his YouTube channel. “Hats off to dos Santos. He’s a great fighter. He really is a great fighter. I watched him fight, and I said, ‘Man, we got our hands full.’ I was very proud of Abubakar. He fought like a warrior. He popped his knee in the first round. He comes back, he goes, ‘I popped my knee.’ I went, ‘Ohh, boy.’ This is one of those situations where injuries happen all the time.

“Whether you pop your knee, you break your hand, I’m sorry, but you gotta go out and win the fight or you quit right there on the stool. He didn’t wanna quit, obviously. He went and fought, he fought his heart out, and obviously, he couldn’t do what he wanted. But regardless, the other opponent was super tough. And hey, it was a great fight. Not for the fans but for us, it was a great fight in the sense that we didn’t know who won. Both sides didn’t know.”

Nurmagomedov has now split his first four octagon appearances. After an upset loss to David Zawada in his UFC debut, the 33-year-old rebounded with back-to-back wins over Jared Gooden and Gadzhi Omargadzhiev, before dropping a split decision to Zaleski dos Santos.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 45.

Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos confident with UFC on ESPN 45 win, says Abubakar Nurmagomedov came to stall

Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos knew he had done enough to get his hand raised at UFC on ESPN 45.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos[/autotag] knew he had done enough to get his hand raised at UFC on ESPN 45.

Zaleski dos Santos (24-7 MMA, 10-3 UFC) returned after serving a one-year suspension by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency to squeak past [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] by split decision in this past Saturday’s main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Nurmagomedov was only 1-for-8 in his takedown attempts as the Brazilian was able to fend off his grappling and outstrike him overall in the fight.

“I knew what I had done to win this,” Zaleski dos Santos told MMA Junkie and other reporters through an interpreter. “I thought I was more aggressive. I had more significant strikes. What he came to do was actually stall against the fence, and I was pretty confident about it.”

Zaleski dos Santos, who is expecting a baby girl within days, is ready to book his next fight. He has two welterweights in mind.

“As soon as possible,” Zaleski dos Santos said of his next fight. “Just want to go back home, my daughter is scheduled for the 10th (of June), so pretty soon. There are a couple of names that I mentioned: Gunnar Nelson and Neil Magny. I want to fight them as soon as possible. Hey, UFC, just make that happen, and I’ll be right back.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 45.

UFC on ESPN 45 post-event facts: Is Jim Miller’s record resume UFC Hall of Fame worthy?

Check out the facts and stats to come out of UFC on ESPN 45, where Jim Miller continued to stack historic figures on his resume.

The UFC opened a non-stop schedule of summer events on Saturday with UFC on ESPN 45, which took place at the promotion’s home base of the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The main event saw [autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) remain undefeated inside the octagon and take the next step as a flyweight contender when he edged [autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag] (24-1 MMA, 7-4 UFC) by split decision.

There were a number of other noteworthy results on the card. For more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC on ESPN 45.

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UFC on ESPN 45 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Program total passes $18 million

UFC on ESPN 45 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 45 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $199,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC on ESPN 45 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The main card aired on ESPN following prelims streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC on ESPN 45 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

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[autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Alex Caceres[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Daniel Pineda[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Jesse Butler[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Tim Elliott[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Victor Altamirano[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Daniel Santos[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Johnny Munoz[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Don’Tale Mayes[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]John Castaneda[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Muin Gafurov[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Muhammad Naimov[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Jamie Mullarkey[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Elise Reed[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jinh Yu Frey[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Da’Mon Blackshear[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Luan Lacerda[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Philipe Lins[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Maxim Grishin[/autotag]: $4,500

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $45,000 while title challengers get $45,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-45 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

“UFC on ESPN 45: Kara-France vs. Albazi” – $199,500
“UFC Fight Night 224: Dern vs. Hill” – $179,500
“UFC on ABC 4: Rozenstruik vs. Almeida” – $267,500
“UFC 288: Sterling vs. Cejudo” – $267,500
“UFC Fight Night 223: Song vs. Simon” – $144,500
“UFC Fight Night 222: Pavlovich vs. Blaydes” – $181,500
“UFC on ESPN 44: Holloway vs. Allen” – $254,500
“UFC 287: Pereira vs. Adesanya 2” – $274,500
“UFC on ESPN 43: Vera vs. Sandhagen” – $137,000
“UFC 286: Edwards vs. Usman 3” – $266,500
“UFC Fight Night 221: Yan vs. Dvalishvili” – $194,000
“UFC 285: Jones vs. Gane” – $282,500
“UFC Fight Night 220: Muniz vs. Allen” – $126,000
“UFC Fight Night 219: Andrade vs. Blanchfield” – $158,000
“UFC 284: Makhachev vs. Volkanovski” – $263,000
“UFC Fight Night 218: Lewis vs. Spivac” – $136,000
“UFC 283: Teixeira vs. Hill” – $359,500
“UFC Fight Night 217: Strickland vs. Imavov” – $137,000

Year-to-date total: $3,414,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $18,003,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 45.

UFC on ESPN 45 video: Hear from each winner, guest fighters backstage

Check out what the UFC on ESPN 45 winners and guest fighters had to say backstage at Saturday’s event.

LAS VEGAS – UFC on ESPN 45 took place Saturday with 13 bouts on the lineup. We’ve got you covered with backstage winner interviews from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

You can hear from all the UFC Fight Night 224 winners by checking out their post-fight news conferences below.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 45.

UFC on ESPN 45 predictions: Is anyone picking Kai Kara-France over Amir Albazi?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the UFC on ESPN 45 main card in Las Vegas, featuring Kai Kara-France vs. Amir Albazi at flyweight.

	Kara-France vs. Albazi	Caceres vs. Pineda	Altamirano vs. Elliott	Silva vs. Souza	Nurmagomedov vs. Zaleski dos Santos
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 77-52	Kara-France (56%)	Caceres (75%)	Elliott (60%)	Silva (74%)	Nurmagomedov (59%)
Matt Erickson @MattE 86-43	Albazi	Caceres	Altamirano	Souza	Nurmagomedov
Matthew Wells @MrMWells 81-48	Albazi	Caceres	Altamirano	Souza	Nurmagomedov
Simon Samano @SJSamano 81-48	Albazi	Caceres	Altamirano	Silva	Nurmagomedov
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 78-51	Albazi	Pineda	Altamirano	Silva	Nurmagomedov
Nolan King @mma_kings 78-51	Albazi	Caceres	Elliott	Silva	Nurmagomedov
Mike Bohn @MikeBohn 76-53 2014 Champion	Kara-France	Caceres	Altamirano	Silva	Nurmagomedov
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway -74-55 2018, 2022 Champion	Albazi	Caceres	Altamirano	Silva	Zaleski dos Santos
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 72-57	Albazi	Caceres	Elliott	Silva	Nurmagomedov
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 70-59	Albazi	Pineda	Altamirano	Silva	Nurmagomedov
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 70-59	Albazi	Caceres	Altamirano	Silva	Nurmagomedov
Brian Garcia @thegoze 68-61 2017 Champion	Albazi	Caceres	Altamirano	Silva	Zaleski dos Santos

Editor’s note: The main card fight between Jim Miller and short-notice replacement Jesse Butler was added too late for our picks deadline and is not included.)

After a week off, the UFC is back in Las Vegas with a key flyweight fight at the top of the bill.

UFC on ESPN 45 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN and streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, [autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag] (24-10 MMA, 7-3 UFC) will try to bounce back into contention after an interim flyweight title loss to Brandon Moreno in July 2022 when he meets [autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag] (16-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC), who has yet to lose in the UFC.

Although the odds at most sportsbooks are a pick’em, it’s Albazi who is our closest thing to a unanimous pick on the main card this week. Our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers have it as a 10-1 blowout for Albazi.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Alex Caceres[/autotag] (20-13 MMA, 15-11 UFC) meets [autotag]Daniel Pineda[/autotag] (28-14 MMA, 5-5 UFC) in a featherweight bout. Caceres has won six of his past seven fights, is a -175 favorite at the betting window, and has a big 9-2 picks lead.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Victor Altamirano[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) takes on former flyweight title challenger [autotag]Tim Elliott[/autotag] (18-12-1 MMA, 7-10 UFC). Elliott nearly is a 2-1 betting favorite, but our pickers have Altamirano in a 9-2 blowout.

[autotag]Karine Silva[/autotag] (15-4 MMA, 1-0 UFC) meets [autotag]Ketlen Souza[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC) in an all-Brazil women’s flyweight scrap. Silva is more than a 2-1 favorite and has a big 9-2 lead from our staff members.

And to open the main card at welterweight, [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (17-3-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) takes on [autotag]Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos[/autotag] (23-7 MMA, 9-3 UFC). The fight has nearly even odds with Nurmagomedov at -115, but our staff members have him with a huge 9-2 picks win, as well.

In the MMA Junkie consensus picks, Kara-France (56 percent), Caceres (75 percent), Elliott (60 percent), Silva (74 percent) and Nurmagomedov (59 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 45.

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (April 24-30)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie from April 24-30.

Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos returns from suspension against Abubakar Nurmagomedov at June 3 UFC event

Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos will return to UFC competition in June after serving a one-year suspension by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

[autotag]Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos[/autotag] will return after serving a one-year suspension by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

Zaleski dos Santos (23-7 MMA, 9-3 UFC) faces [autotag]Abubakar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (17-3-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) at a UFC Fight Night event on June 3 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

A person with knowledge of the booking informed MMA Junkie of the matchup but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. Canal Encarada was first to report the news.

On April 8, 2022, Zaleski dos Santos was suspended by USADA after failing an out-of-competition drug test for ostarine, a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) that is prohibited at all times.

Zaleski dos Santos’ team claimed the failure was the result of a tainted supplement, but the pharmacy that makes the supplements denied any compounding of ostarine despite the positive result. Because of this, Zaleski dos Santos’ suspension with USADA wasn’t lowered.

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The failed drug test forced Zaleski dos Santos to withdraw from a scheduled bout against Mounir Lazzez at UFC on ESPN 34. The Brazilian hasn’t competed since defeating Benoit Saint-Denis in October 2021 at UFC 267.

Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov is coming off back-to-back wins. After dropping his UFC debut to David Zawada, the 33-year-old rebounded with unanimous decision wins over Jared Gooden and most recently Gadzhi Omargadzhiev last October at UFC 280.

With the addition, the UFC Fight Night lineup for June 3 includes:

Jack Hermansson vs. Brendan Allen
Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Miesha Tate
Amir Albazi vs. Kai Kara-France
Tim Elliott vs. Rodrigo Nascimento
Jinh Yu Frey vs. Elise Reed
David Onama vs. TBA
Alex Caceres vs. Daniel Pineda
Da’Mon Blackshear vs. Luan Lacerda
John Castaneda vs. Mateus Mendonca
Abubakar Nurmagomedov vs. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Feb. 6-12)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie from Feb. 6-12.