Undefeated middleweight Shara ‘Bullet’ Magomedov made a statement at UFC Saudi Arabia as he accepted fight offer from fellow perfect prospect.
Everything was going right for fans of Shara Magomedov last night: A third-round finish of a tough opponent, followed by a callout from an undefeated star in the making… Then things took a frustrating twist as Dana White confirmed US fans might never get the chance to see ‘Bullet’ firing on all cylinders.
Shara Magomedov accepts fight callout from undefeated star Bo Nickal
Undefeated middleweight contender Shara ‘Bullet’ Magomedov extended his professional record to 13-0 last night in the dunes of Saudi Arabia with a third-round knockout of Antonio Trocoli.
The devastating finish was the 11th of his career to date and earned the Russian powerhouse an extra $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.
Yet just as that bout reached its brutal conclusion, undefeated American star Bo Nickal took to social media to call out Shara Magomedov for a fight.
The 6-0 prospect simply wrote, “Give me bullet” – although he later also joked that this was a callout of Valentina ‘Bullet’ Shevchenko; not Magomedov.
At the UFC Saudi Arabia post-fight press conference, Shara ‘Bullet’ was given the chance to respond to the callout; which he unsurprisingly accepted without a second thought.
“Yes, Bo Nickal is an interesting opponent, [it’s an] interesting fight. He has good wrestling, wrestling no for me is no problem.
“I’m from Dagestan, you know brother Russian men, icemen, no problem. Wrestling takedown no problem, dangerous damage, elbow [and] knee – let’s go.”
Unfortunately, UFC fans might have to quell their excitement at such a matchup between Shara ‘Bullet’ and Bo Nickal being put together, as the Russian powerhouse could be barred from entering the United States.
Dana White reveals Shara ‘Bullet’ might be Saudi-based for some time
At the post-fight press conference for UFC Saudi Arabia, Dana White was asked whether Magomedov could compete in the promotion on US soil – to which the UFC President responded.
“Can he? Probably not – we’ll keep him out here.”
A reason for the US travel issues was not confirmed, with the matter rumored to be related to Magomedov’s eye issues.
Speaking alongside Turki Alalshikh, Dana White also confirmed that the UFC will be returning to the Kingdom Arena in 2025, “We’re looking forward to the next one. We’ll be back next year, first quarter of next year.”
Frustratingly, a fight in the Middle East between Nickal and Magomedov also appears to be a no-go, with the undefeated American sharing only last week that he doesn’t want to compete in this region of the combat sports world.
“Honestly, I don’t really want to go to Saudi Arabia and fight -like that’s freaking far as c***,” he stated on a recent episode of the ‘Nickals and Dimes’ Podcast.
We’ll have to wait and see whether the UFC opts to put Nickal and Magomedov together for an international show that’s not based in the Middle East, with two possible options being UFC 305 in Perth, Australia or UFC Fight Night 244 in Paris, France.
The promotion also returns to Abu Dhabi in August for a Fight Night event and in October for a PPV.