Khabib Nurmagomedov can’t see his team competing on UFC White House card
UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov has explained why he doesn’t expect to see many Russian fighters being part of next summer’s planned UFC White House event.
Throughout the course of the last few decades, few fighters have been as influential as Khabib Nurmagomedov in the world of mixed martial arts. His rise to prominence coincided with a dominant spell for Dagestani fighters, and Khabib was at the forefront of that moment. He was the UFC lightweight champion, he retired with an unbeaten record, and he is currently viewed as one of the greatest of all time by many pundits, fans and fighters alike.
Next summer, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will make their way to Washington D.C for a planned card at the White House. Donald Trump announced the plans earlier this year, and while no official date has yet been given, it seems as if it will take place around or on his 80th birthday as part of the celebrations.
Khabib Nurmagomedov’s efforts in mixed martial arts aren’t limited just to his own work, either. The likes of Umar Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev are also on tremendous runs of form, and they certainly have the name value required to compete at the White House. In the eyes of Khabib, though, that isn’t a very likely thing to happen.
Khabib Nurmagomedov’s view on UFC White House card
“I think if you’re making White House fights, it has to be more American fighters,” Nurmagomedov recently said in an interview with Josh Thomson. “I think it has to be more American fighters. It’s very interesting. If a Georgian fighter fights against Russian fighter, it’s not interesting in front of White House. It has to be something like American fighters representing a country, and they fight against other guys. It has to be like this, the way I see it.”
Quotes via MMA Junkie
If Dana White believes that there is a title fight that makes sense for someone like Makhachev or even Umar, then something tells us he would consider putting them on this card regardless of their nationality. For now, though, we’ll have to wait and see.
