Umar Nurmagomedov is tasked with being the opener in a month of three major championship fights for his team.
Nurmagomedov (18-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) is set to challenge Merab Dvalishvili (18-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC) for the bantamweight title in Saturday’s UFC 311 co-main event at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif. (ESPN+ pay-per-view, EPSNews, ESPN+), then in the very next fight, his teammate Islam Makhachev will put his lightweight belt on the line against Arman Tsarukyan.
It will be the first time in UFC history when one teammate challenges for gold in a co-headliner, while another teammate attempts to defend in the main event. To raise the stakes even further, Nurmagomedov’s brother, Usman, will attempt to defend his Bellator lightweight strap vs. Paul Hughes at Road to Dubai on Jan. 25, and told MMA Junkie this week he’s “stressed” about the situation.
