UFC Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov just kicked Tony Ferguson’s interim Lightweight belt during a staredown at a UFC 249 press conference.
Nurmagomedov and Ferguson trash-talked each other during yesterday’s UFC 249 pre-fight press conference. Things escalated when the two fighters squared off and Dana White was forced to step in between them.
During their staredown, Ferguson had brought his interim Lightweight belt around, which Nurmagomedov was not impressed by. “El Cucuy” proceeded to put his belt on the ground and could be heard saying to Nurmagomedov “your belt vs. mine”. Then, as Ferguson proceeded to talk to the undefeated UFC Lightweight champion, Nurmagomedov unexpectedly kicked Ferguson’s interim belt, nearly sending it off stage.
This angered Ferguson and Dana White had to step in between the two, forcing the security to seperate them. The whole pre-fight press conference was heated, which has got the fans even more excited for the two to finally face each other at UFC 249 in April.
The two have previously been scheduled to fight 4 times in the past. Nurmagomedov and Ferguson have both pulled out twice due to injuries and weight cutting issues. This April’s UFC 249 main event between Nurmagomedov and Ferguson is widely considered to be one of the most anticipated fights in the sports history.
The undefeated Dagestani will enter the contest with a perfect 28-0 record, including 12 wins inside the Octagon, with 2 successful title defenses. Nurmagomedov last fought back at UFC 242, submitting the highly ranked Lightweight challenger Dustin Poirier. Prior to that he beat Conor McGregor with a 4th-round submission in their record breaking bout at UFC 229.
Meanwhile, Tony Ferguson is riding a 12-fight winning streak with a fresh TKO victory over Donald Cerrone at UFC 238. He is widely considered to be the best Lightweight in the world. Prior to his win over “Cowboy” he beat Anthony Pettis via 2nd round corner stoppage. He won the interim UFC Lightweight title back in 2017 when he submitted Kevin Lee.
This article first appeared on CLOSEDGUARDMEDIA.com on 7th March, 2020.
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