Khabib Nurmagomedov celebrates 3rd anniversary of lightweight title win over Al Iaquinta

On April 7, 2018, Khabib Nurmagomedov became the UFC lightweight champion. And while celebrating the third anniversary of his massive achievement, Nurmagomedov took to Twitter and revealed the things he had to deal with leading to the bout at UFC 223. The Eagle said that he was given four different top contenders after Tony Ferguson pulled out for the event due to injury. However, all those fights also failed to materialise, forcing the UFC to bring in Al Iaquinta at the last minute.

Khabib retirement: Al Iaquinta vs Khabib Nurmagomedov

Al Iaquinta, who was not even in the top five of the rankings, weighed in at 155.2 lbs, which also raised many eyebrows. However, the fight finally happed at the scheduled date, with Khabib Nurmagomedov dominating from start to finish. While The Eagle won via unanimous decision (50–44, 50–43, 50–43), he showed respect to his opponent, who saved the entire event by agreeing to step in on short notice. 

UFC news: The failed bouts

After UFC stripped Conor McGregor from his lightweight title for absence, Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Tony Ferguson was announced for the undisputed belt at UFC 223. However, Tony Ferguson pulled out after damaging his knee while training, with the promotion bringing in then-featherweight champion Max Holloway as a replacement. Holloway and Nurmagomedov even had the press conference for the bout, but just a day prior to the event, the New York Commission deemed the Hawaiian medically unfit to fight.

With Khabib Nurmagomedov again without an opponent, Paul Felder showed interest in stepping in. However, the NYSAC again played the spoiler, denying Felder to fight for the title, considering he was unranked at that time. UFC then enlisted Al Iaquinta, who was in the top 10 of the lightweight rankings. The Brooklyn native weighed slightly more than the weight limit, but UFC let him fight nevertheless.

Khabib retirement: The Conor McGregor attack

Apart from dealing with the failed bouts, Khabib Nurmagomedov was also in a heated feud with Conor McGregor. Things between the two parties got so worse that McGregor flew to New York from Dublin and attacked the bus Nurmagomedov was sitting in after the UFC 223 press conference. The Notorious One threw a dolly at the bus which shattered a window before fleeing the scene. While McGregor later surrendered and received various fines for his actions, many fighters who were sitting on the bus with Nurmagomedov were injured, leading to many UFC 223 bouts being cancelled.

Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov ultimately met at UFC 229, where the Eagle retained his title by submitting the former champ in the fourth round. Nurmagomedov then defended his title two more times before retiring from the sport. The Russian retired undefeated with an overall record of 29-0 and a UFC record of 13-0.

Image Source: UFC/ Twitter