(Courtesy of UFC)
Top lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov showed the lightweight division what he was capable of when he knocked out Thiago Tavares in Brazil back in 2013 to improve unbeaten record to 19-0. Next he faces interim champion Tony Ferguson for the lightweight belt at UFC 223 live on Pay-Per-View.
A bout between Nurmagomedov and Ferguson has been scheduled on three different occasions over the past three years and has fallen apart for various reasons. With lightweight champion Conor McGregor on hiatus from fighting, Nurmagomedov and Ferguson will be fighting for the undisputed 155-pound title on April 7 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The promotion plans to strip McGregor of the belt prior to the event.
In addition to the UFC 223 main event pitting Ferguson against Nurmagomedov, the co-main event bout features another title fight. Newly minted UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas puts her belt on the line against the woman she took it from, Joanna Jedrzejczyk, in an immediate rematch.
