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Russia’s UFC Champ Nurmagomedov to fight US Poirier in Abu Dhabi

The fight is scheduled for September

Khabib Nurmagomedov Valeriy Sharifulin/TASS

Khabib Nurmagomedov

© Valeriy Sharifulin/TASS

MOSCOW, April 30. /TASS/. Russia’s UFC Reigning Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov will fight against UFC Interim Champion Dustin Poirier of the United States on September 7 in Abu Dhabi, the father and coach of the Russian fighter, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, confirmed to TASS on Tuesday.

"The opponent is Dustin Poirier, the fight has been scheduled for September 7, the United Arab Emirates," Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov said. "Poirier has deserved this fight based on athletic principles and we should not underestimate the accomplishments of our opponent."

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US fighter Poirier says can beat Russia’s UFC Champ Nurmagomedov as ‘nobody is perfect’

According to reports earlier in the month, September 7 was set as the date for the fight between Poirier and Nurmagomedov, but the venue for the bout was not announced. The UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) press service reported on Monday that the UFC-242 tournament would be held on September 7 in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.

Two weeks ago a spokesman for the Russian fighter’s team told TASS that Nurmagomedov ruled out all possible contenders for his next fight in September except for Dustin Poirier.

Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier defeated on April 14 another American fighter, Max ‘Blessed’ Holloway (20 wins, 4 defeats), becoming an interim UFC champion, which officially turned him into a mandatory challenger for the fight against Russia’s Nurmagomedov.

Poirier, 30, has fought to win 25 bouts (12 by KO/TKO, 7 by submission and 6 by decisions). He also lost five of his previous fights (2 by KO/TKO, 1 by submission and 2 by decisions).

The 30-year-old Russian fighter, nicknamed ‘The Eagle,’ currently holds an unblemished record of 27 wins in all of his mixed martial arts fights (8 by KOs, 9 by submission and 10 by decision).

Nurmagomedov, hailing from Russia’s North Caucasus Region of Dagestan, was the first Russian to win the UFC champion’s belt during the fight against his US opponent Al Iaquinta in the spring of 2018.

On April 8, 2018, Nurmagomedov defeated Al Iaquinta in a five-round fight for the UFC lightweight belt in New York. The Russian fighter went on to defend his champion’s belt in a fight against Ireland’s Connor McGregor during the UFC 229 tournament in Las Vegas on the night of October 6, 2018, maintaining the title with a choke in the 4th round of the fight.

However, after the fight in Las Vegas last October, a mass brawl broke out between the teams of both fighters, including Nurmagomedov, who jumped out of the cage and attempted to beat up one of the Irish opponent’s team members for insulting him.

Both athletes were slapped later with various sets of sanctions over that incident. A court in the US state of Nevada ordered a nine-month suspension and a fine of $500,000 for Nurmagomedov.

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Top stories from the Russian press on Friday, November 22nd

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