Khabib Nurmagomedov says he feels more motivated ahead of the Tony Ferguson fight than he was his last four outings.
Nurmagomedov is scheduled to put his UFC lightweight title on the line against Ferguson on April 18. The 155-pound championship bout is set to headline UFC 249 inside Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. This matchup has been booked numerous times but both sides have experienced injuries and illnesses that derailed those plans.
Khabib Feels More Motivated Going Into Ferguson Bout
Nurmagomedov recently spoke to reporters in Dagestan. MMARusContext translated the quotes.
“I will train hard. With every fight, I gain more and more experience. I’m getting older, I am 31. I think it’s the peak age of [a] fighter’s career. Of course, I will train more for this fight because I got worthy opponent. He is very good and very dangerous opponent. And to be honest, I lacked this motivation for my last fights.Iaquinta,Conor,Barboza,Poirier.They’re not the same as Tony Ferguson. That’s why I feel that fire burning inside me again.”
This will be “The Eagle’s” third lightweight title defense. He successfully retained the championship against Dustin Poirier back in September. Nurmagomedov submitted “The Diamond” in the third round.
As for Ferguson, he’s finally cashing in on his 12-fight winning streak. “El Cucuy” hasn’t suffered a loss since May 2012. He last competed back in June, defeating Donald Cerrone via second-round TKO.
