Umar Nurmagomedov recently hinted that Merab Dvalishvili might withdraw from their UFC 311 co-main event title fight, scheduled for Jan. 18 in Los Angeles. However, some fight fans speculate the opposite — that Nurmagomedov could be the one to pull out.
The speculation stems from Nurmagomedov’s broken arm sustained late last year. Initially, he deemed the injury too severe to compete in January, but he eventually agreed to the bout. In an interview with ESPN MMA’s Brett Okamoto, Nurmagomedov admitted he is not fully recovered.
“After I was in Dagestan, I punched my arm,” Nurmagomedov said. “I went to the doctor, got an X-ray, and they said, ‘You broke [your arm].’ Even after that, 20 days later, I started running and doing shadowboxing to stay in shape. The pain was still there, but I kept training. Over time, it felt better.”
Nurmagomedov detailed how he resumed training despite concerns from his team.
“I started grappling, wrestling, and even throwing punches,” he continued. “I told my manager Ali [Abdelaziz], ‘I want to fight.’ He reminded me I was injured, but I insisted. Even my brother said, ‘Are you crazy? You can’t fight like this.’ But when the UFC asked again, I told Ali to make it happen. I want to fight in Ramadan if Merab agrees.”
Interestingly, UFC has since removed Nurmagomedov’s interview from YouTube, further fueling speculation.
As of now, it remains unavailable, though it could be reuploaded at a later time.
