Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson UFC title fight nearly finalized for April 18
Will the fifth time be the charm for Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson?
If UFC president Dana White has his way, the most elusive MMA fight of this generation will go down at a yet-to-be-named event on April 18 in the New York City borough of Brooklyn.
According to a Monday report by UFC promotional partner ESPN, White said the company hopes to book the fight as the main event for a pay-per-view card at Barclays Center. Neither fighter has commented yet on the potential fight date.
Ballengee Group, which manages Ferguson, told MMA Junkie that both parties are “in late stages of negotiations.” Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, teased “BREAKING NEWS SOON” earlier Monday on Twitter and later posted a photo on Instagram of a purported signed bout agreement by the UFC lightweight champion.
Four times from 2015-18, the UFC has attempted to make the bout between Nurmagomedov (28-0 MMA, 12-0 UFC) and Ferguson, who has won 12 consecutive fights.
Twice, Nurmagomedov withdrew from the planned matchup. The second time, at UFC 209, he was pulled from his weight cut the day of a planned interim title fight. Ferguson later won the interim belt in a matchup against Kevin Lee at UFC 216.
Ferguson (25-3 MMA, 15-1 UFC) also pulled out twice from planned meetings with Nurmagomedov. In his case, a fluke knee injury suffered on the FOX lot in Los Angeles a week before a planned UFC 223 championship fight kicked off a chain reaction of events, which included Conor McGregor’s infamous bus attack and ended with Nurmagomedov defeating Al Iaquinta for the undisputed title.
Nurmagomedov last competed at UFC 242, where he submitted Dustin Poirier to retain his title. Ferguson’s last win was over Donald Cerrone earlier this year at UFC 238.
Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson UFC title fight nearly finalized for April 18
