What’s the story?
On December 27th, Dana White participated in a media scrum to promote UFC 207. White was asked several questions, relating to Conor McGregor, Ronda Rousey, Amanda Nunes, and much more.
During the press conference, a reporter made an inquiry about the Khabib Nurmagomedov-Tony Ferguson fight. White responded by saying that people shouldn't expect a match between the two fighters anytime soon.
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In case you didn’t know...
Khabib hasn't fought since UFC 205, where he defeated Michael Johnson via submission. While Tony hasn't fought since UFC Fight Night 91, where he defeated UFC Lightweight Champion Rafael Dos Anjos.
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Since, Tony was out of the picture, the next suitable opponent for Khabib, was none other than current UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo. But, according to Aldo, Khabib's father turned down that fight, because he wants his son to rest.
White commented on the issue of Khabib’s father turning down the fight with Aldo:
“He wanted to fight Khabib cause Khabib is looked at as the guy in that weight division. Khabib’s dad didn’t want him to fight. Khabib’s dad wants him to rest.”
The heart of the matter
On the issue of Ferguson fighting Nurmagomedov, White explained further by saying that, the UFC was working towards making that fight happen, but ‘El Cucuy’ refused to fight the Russian, saying that he was not going to compete unless he got the same amount of money as his opponent.
White explained that Khabib has got a different deal that he signed not long ago, and thus, there is no chance of the fight happening because of it. White said that, as he is a promoter it becomes his duty to honour that deal.
“I cut that deal and I signed it and I’ve got to live with my deal.”
Khabib and Tony are currently ranked as #1 and #2 respectively in the UFC Lightweight Division. Therefore, this matchup between Khabib and Tony would’ve decided the next contender for Conor McGregor's Championship.
What’s next?
The announcement by Dana White left both Khabib and Tony frustrated. Khabib even told Tony that he will pay him out of his own pocket because this fight was their means of getting the opportunity to fight Conor McGregor, but Tony refused to fight under such conditions.
Also read: Tony Ferguson wants a big payday to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov
Sportskeeda’s take
The only logical way to sort this issue out would be for the UFC to negotiate with Tony Ferguson and arrive at a settlement, leaving both parties satisfied.
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