Considered one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, Khabib Nurmagomedov is looking to continue making an impact in the sport.
Speaking with ESPN, Nurmagomedov stated that he is looking to expand his Eagle FC promotion to the United States. He will be hosting his first event in January, which will take place in Miami. A majority of events have been in Russia.
Production company FLX will stream fights on the FLXcast app and the events will be inside the FLX Arena. Khabib is looking to have over 50 fighters on his roster, many of them veterans who have competed for Bellator and the UFC.
"If you want to become big in MMA, you have to be in USA," Nurmagomedov said. "For fighters, for promotion, you have to be in U.S. If you're not in U.S., you can never become No. 1 or best. It's almost impossible."
Making his MMA debut in 2008, Khabib joined the UFC in 2012. An unstoppable force, Khabib won the UFC Lightweight Title in 2017 against Al Iaquinta. He defended the belt three times, beating Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, and Justin Gaethje all via submission.
Following the Gaethje fight in 2020, Khabib retired, honoring his father and trainer Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, who died due to complications after testing positive for COVID-19. He is now training other fighters and has become one of the top coaches in MMA today. Khabib recently bought Gorilla Fighting Championship and turned it into Eagle FC.
As far as if he sees the promotion as competition to the UFC, Khabib is not trying to start a war.
"It's not a secret the UFC is the best in the world," Nurmagomedov went on to say. "Almost 30 years these guys, the UFC, have done a great show around the world. UFC is a great brand. I don't want to compete with them or other promotions. I have my principles. I have my view."
A press conference with more details is set for December 15 in Miami.
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