5 UFC fighters who gave Khabib Nurmagomedov his best contests

Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the greatest MMA fighters to have ever competed in the UFC. The Dagestani wrestler not only captured and defended the UFC lightweight title, but he also did so without ever losing a fight.

That is not to say that Nurmagomedov was never tested. He consistently fought elite athletes in the UFC's most stacked division. Despite a few turbulent moments, Nurmagomedov always came out on top, but there were some fights where he was pushed to the limit.

On that note, let's look at five UFC fighters who gave Khabib Nurmagomedov the toughest contests throughout his career.

#5 Al Iaquinta vs Khabib Nurmagomedov

In 2018, Khabib Nurmagomedov was finally granted a shot at the UFC lightweight title. His original foe was set to be Tony Ferguson, but 'El Cucuy' was forced to pull out due to a knee injury. He was then replaced by Max Holloway, who was deemed unfit to compete on weigh-in day. Al Iaquinta eventually stepped in with barely a day's notice.

While this would, of course, be a massive disadvantage for Iaquinta, it was also a spanner in the works for Nurmagomedov, who had been preparing for entirely different opponents in Ferguson and Holloway.

Khabib Nurmagomedov ultimately won the fight, although Iaquinta pushed him throughout every round. The fight would later turn out to be the only five-round bout that Nurmagomedov would be unable to win via stoppage.

UFC 223: Nurmagomedov v Iaquinta

#4 Dustin Poirier vs Khabib Nurmagomedov

Nurmagomedov's second title defense was against Dustin 'The Diamond' Poirier, a man considered by many to be the current uncrowned champion at 155lbs. Poirier only had two real moments of success, but each of those arguably placed Nurmagomedov in more danger than he had ever experienced inside the UFC octagon before.

The first of these was a flurry of strikes Poirier threw, appearing to rock Nurmagomedov momentarily. However, the Russian used his wrestling to nullify the danger. The second was Poirier's guillotine attempt, which Nurmagomedov later revealed was the closest he's ever come to being submitted.

#3 Justin Gaethje vs Khabib Nurmagomedov

Nurmagomedov's final UFC fight was against Justin 'The Highlight' Gaethje. The fight may have only lasted a round and a half, but Gaethje put in an impressive performance. In fact, 'The Highlight' won the first round on two of the judges' scorecards.

Gaethje's classic use of brutal leg kicks and heavy combination punching saw Nurmagomedov take more damage in a single round than he had ever suffered before. Ultimately, he took Gaethje down and submitted him, but it really could have gone either way until that point. A fitting end to 'The Eagle's' career.

#2 Conor McGregor vs Khabib Nurmagomedov

When Irish superstar Conor McGregor returned to the UFC following a brief detour into the world of boxing, he sought to reclaim his lightweight belt, which had been stripped from him due to inactivity. Unfortunately for the Irishman, the new champion was none other than Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Nurmagomedov had to endure endless taunting and disrespect from McGregor in the buildup to the fight. When the two men entered the octagon, Nurmagomedov initially had the upper hand. However, McGregor had some success in the later rounds, and officially became the first man to win a round over Khabib.

However, 'The Eagle' rebounded in the fourth, bringing McGregor down and submitting him. He then also took it upon himself to fight McGregor's team.

#1 Gleison Tibau vs Khabib Nurmagomedov

This fight always comes up when Nurmagomedov's undefeated record is discussed. 'The Eagle' was matched up with Gleison Tibau in only his second UFC fight.

The fight went the full three rounds, with many in attendance, including Joe Rogan on commentary, believing Tibau had won the fight. This was due to Tibau's repeated success in defending Nurmagomedov's takedowns. The Dagestani was unable to assert his dominant ground game to the extent that he typically did throughout his career.

However, the judges ultimately gave Nurmagomedov the decision victory, scoring all three rounds in his favor. This is the only contentious fight on Nurmagomedov's record and will undoubtedly be the subject of many an argument to come when discussing Nurmagomedov's 'GOAT' status.