Khabib Nurmagomedov understands the position Arman Tsarukyan is in.
Nurmagomedov will corner UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in the main event of Saturday’s UFC 311 card. The former UFC titleholder was preparing for Makhachev to face Tsarukyan, but the originally slotted challenger was forced to withdraw due to a back injury during his weight cut. Renato Moicano now gets the title shot against Makhachev.
Ahead of the UFC’s first pay-per-view card of the year, Nurmagomedov gave his reaction to Tsarukyan’s late scratch.
“Honestly, I knew this yesterday, at 1 a.m, [overnight] before I [went] to sleep,” Nurmagomedov said. “Honestly, this can happen with anybody. If you guys remember 2017, March, it happened with me too. Then after that, I go to hospital, make surgery, come back and I tell UFC, ‘It was my mistake, give me other best guy. I’m going to beat this guy and deserve my title shot.’ It was the same thing with me.
“I just want to wish him all the best. He’s young. He’s tough. He can come back. He [has] to survive this situation and come back.”
Nurmagomedov will corner back-to-back title fights — first, Umar Nurmagomedov, who challenges Merab Dvalishvili for the bantamweight championship in the co-main event — but now has to prepare Makhachev for a brand new opponent in just over a day’s notice.
One thing the all-time great won’t do is take Moicano too lightly.
“Now, new main event,” Nurmagomedov explained. “I think with Moicano, he has very big experience in the UFC… 10, 11 years in UFC. He [has four-fight] win streak, and he’s on his prime. It’s a good fight.
“Of course, it’s not like Arman and Islam, but it’s still very competitive fight, and we [are] not going to underestimate this guy.”
