By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
After almost a year of hiatus, the reigning and defending UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov will finally return to the octagon.
Awaiting the Russian champion is the interim champ, Justin Gaethje who just took down the tagged “Number one Threat” to Khabib, Tony Ferguson in a grueling five-rounder.
It was Nurmagomedov who was initially planned to fight Ferguson but the bout never materialized due to injury or illness.
Gaethje’s victory over Ferguson propelled his contention to become Nurmagomedov’s next opponent.
Now that Gaethje eliminated Khabib’s mortal enemy, he will try to prove that his brawl fighting style is enough to counter the Russian’s heavy and polished ground game.
Aside from the intense pressure Gaethje can give going in as a brawler, he possesses excellent striking which may pose some difficulty against ground-gamers.
On the other side, the undisputed lightweight king is yet to find a worthy opponent in his division with an astounding 28-0 record, the longest active undefeated streak in the history of the UFC.
