5 things you may not know about Conor McGregor’s opponent Khabib Nurmagomedov
The Russian defends his UFC lightweight title against McGregor in Ireland this weekend.
Khabib Nurmagomedov makes the first defence of his UFC lightweight title against Conor McGregor at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas this weekend.
The unbeaten Russian became champion by outpointing late replacement Al Iaquinta at UFC 223 in April, just a few days after it was announced McGregor would be relieved of the belt because of inactivity.
Here, Press Association Sport looks at five things you may not know about the 30-year-old Dagestani ahead of UFC 229.
1 Distinctive headwear
Nurmagomedov distinguishes himself by donning a sizeable woolly hat when he weighs in as well as immediately before and after his bouts. The item of clothing is known as a papakha (pronounced puh-pah-hah) and is traditionally worn by men throughout the Caucasus. Nurmagomedov’s particular brand is seemingly in tribute to his Avar roots and is made of shaggy sheep’s skin and wool, then adjusted with a basic rope.
2 Best of enemies
3 Streak and records
The UFC’s first Russian-born champion will be bidding to extend the longest unbeaten streak in mixed martial arts against McGregor, having defeated all 26 of his previous opponents – 10 by decision and eight knockouts and stoppages apiece. Nurmagomedov also holds the UFC record for number of takedowns in a single fight, managing to bring Abel Trujillo to the mat on 21 occasions out of 27 attempts in their three-round contest in May 2013.
