Paul Hughes claims Usman Nurmagomedov "was about to break" in lightweight title fight: "I have his number"

Paul Hughes recently reflected on his title fight against Usman Nurmagomedov last Saturday at PFL Dubai and expressed interest in a rematch. He noted that the Dagestani was fading and believes he proves that he would best him should they fight again.

'Big News' received plenty of praise from the MMA community, which included Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev, following his incredible performance as he took the fight to the undefeated champion. Hughes came up short, but there was an overwhelming consensus on social media that the PFL should run the fight back, with the 27-year-old suggesting Belfast, Northern Ireland as the location.

During his latest appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, the PFL star recalled their clash of heads in the fourth round being an unfortunate turning point in the fight. Hughes mentioned that he was getting the better of Usman and had precise timing, which makes him a lot more confident about his chances in a rematch:

"Usman [Nurmagomedov] was about to break..I was waiting for this opportunity. I had spent three rounds breaking him down, making the reads and getting him exactly where I needed him to be to finish him. I was folding him over at the end of the third round...I could feel his energy and his spirit break...And the headbutt happened...That's why I'm also so excited to fight him again because I know I have his number."

Check out Paul Hughes' comments below:

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Paul Hughes sounds off on judges' scorecards for Usman Nurmagomedov bout

In addition to reflecting on his loss and expressing interest in a rematch against Usman Nurmagomedov, Paul Hughes sounded off on the judges' scorecards for their main event title fight.

During the aforementioned clip, Hughes mentioned that the scorecards received plenty of debate online and noted that they weren't a true reflection of what transpired during his fight with Usman:

"I think one of the judges gave [round 2] for me...Maybe I didn't put enough pressure on him early but I know for a fact, Ariel, [Nurmagomedov] was done...And I think that that's not maybe what people are talking about enough...When I'm thinking and assessing the fight, that's what I'm thinking about not like, individual scoring rounds because obviously, the scorecards were bullsh*t."

Check out the judges' scorecards for Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Paul Hughes below: