Coming off his massive win over Conor McGregor last October, in what’s widely considered to be the biggest fight in MMA history, Khabib Nurmagomedov is reportedly set to collect his biggest payday, Saturday.
UFC 229
Nurmagomedov faced McGregor at UFC 229 last October, and following his submission win, it was revealed he received a guaranteed purse of $2 million. In addition, the event is believed to have moved around 2,400,000 pay-per-view buys – the most in UFC history.
That number eclipsed the 1.6 million PPVs McGregors’s rematch with Nate Diaz at UFC 202 in August, 2016 is believed to have sold.
Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov’s reported comments about 242
Well, Khabib is scheduled to face Dustin Poirier this Saturday at UFC 242. Recently the lightweight champ’s father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, reportedly told the Russian outlet TASS his son will collect his biggest payday yet (translations via MMA Junkie):
“We will make 3 to 3.5 (times) more,” Abdulmanap reportedly said, while referencing Khabib’s purse for his bout with McGregor.
“We aren’t fighting for a small change – we know what we worth,” he continued. “It is not enough for us, because we are the best now. We have beaten the best, and we are ready to fight the best. We are popular – we know that. When we enter the arena, you will see the reaction to us, and reaction to Poirier.”
So, ya. It looks like Khabib’s win over Conor, his 27-0 record and sizeable fanbase provided him with plenty of bargaining leverage. If Nurmagomedov beats Poirier, and faces Tony Ferguson next, one would think he’ll set a new watermark for his biggest payday again.
UFC 242 line-up
Here is the line-up for next Saturday’s, September 7th card in Abu Dhabi (via Bloody Elbow).
Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Dustin Poirier
Edson Barboza vs. Paul Felder
Curtis Blaydes vs. Shamil Abdurakhimov
Islam Makhachev vs. Davi Ramos
Mairbek Taisumov vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira
Khalid Taha vs. Bruno Silva
Belal Muhammad vs. Takashi Sato
Liana Jojua vs. Sarah Moras
Nordine Taleb vs. Muslim Salikhov
Joanne Calderwood vs. Andrea Lee
Omari Akhmedov vs. Zak Cummings
Magomed Mustafaev vs. Don Madge
Puna Soriano vs. Adam Yandiev
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