One of the biggest criticisms thrown Khabib Nurmagomedov’s way has been about whether or not he would be able to make the 155-pound weight limit. His failure to fight at UFC 209 against Tony Ferguson was pointed to health issues which were believed to be caused by improper weight cutting.
Khabib, however, went on to clarify that his problems are more rooted in being injured rather than making weight.
“You know guys, I’ve never had a problem with weight cuts,” Khabib said during the UFC 219 press conference. “My problem, my number one enemy is injuries, because I train so hard. I’m not training like other UFC fighters. I’m training so hard, and my training partners know about this.”
“Last couple of years, I tried to change some things and I think I do this very well,” he continued. “I changed a lot of things but I never had a problem with weight cuts. Now, I’m healthy. Everywhere, I’m healthy, inside, outside, knees, back, everything is healthy. When I began this training camp, I felt good. And when I’m healthy, I always make weight.”
Khabib fought a mere four times in the last four years after being sidelined by various injuries. But for 2018, he plans to be way more active.
“Next year, I’m gonna stay busy, stay healthy, no injuries,” Khabib said. “And I wanna fight April (or) May, before Ramadan. After (that), I wanna fight September, then I wanna fight December. This is my plan. I want to fight three times in 2018, if no injuries are coming, I hope.”
Khabib won a dominant unanimous decision verdict against Edson Barboza, along with a Performance of the Night Bonus and $50,000. He now extends his undefeated record to 25-0 (with 16 wins by stoppage).
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