Khabib Nurmagomedov has stated "life is good" just hours after Nate Diaz's bout with Khamzat Chimaev was cancelled.
Diaz was set to face Chechen star Chimaev at UFC 279 in his final outing for the promotion at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, but the fight was cancelled after his rival missed weight. Chaos ensued, with Diaz refusing to agree to a catchweight bout, which then saw him paired with new rival Tony Ferguson for Saturday night's headline act.
Nurmagomedov was a long-term rival of Ferguson during his own UFC career, with the pair frequently coming close to meeting in the Octagon, but a bout failed to materialise. And the Russian star has posted an intriguing social media message on Twitter, with the caption: "Life is good."
He can be seen in the image attached looking at his phone while holding a drink with a beaming grin on his face, which suggests he may be rather pleased with the events that unfolded at Friday's weigh-in. Ferguson stepped up to the plate and will face Diaz at 170lbs having been ready for the fight if his rival's meeting with Chimaev collapsed.
Diaz had already fired a clear dig at Nurmagomedov, who is retired from the UFC, during his scathing assessment of Chimaev's behaviour after he grinned from ear to ear when failing to make weight. “Tony’s been around a long time,” Diaz said. “We should have fought a long time ago. Khabib’s b****-a** was afraid of him, just like this b****-a** mother****er (Khamzat Chimaev) was afraid of me.
"Yesterday, we punched his b****-a** in the back here and now he don’t know how to make weight. You know what I’m saying? You guys already know what it is. Real G’s come from California. America motherf***er!”
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A fight between Nurmagomedov and Ferguson was scheduled five times during the Russian's career, with the most recent outing set for the curtain call on his time in the UFC. However, the fight collapsed yet again and Nurmagomedov instead made his final title defence against Justin Gaethje in 2020 before retiring undefeated.
Despite Nurmagomedov hanging up his gloves and switching his focus to his own MMA promotion, Eagles FC, Ferguson is still confident he has the credentials to lure him back from his time away providing he beats Diaz. "I am the one to get him out of retirement,” Ferguson told reporters. “That dude’s not retired. When it comes down to it, when you lose somebody [Nurmagomedov's father died in 2020], you have to take some time off.
“You have to think and you have to do whatever you have to do, but his father had said the fight to make was myself and Khabib. Before he passed away, he did say that and Khabib has that in his mindset.”
