Paul Hughes Prioritizes Beating Nurmagomedov’s Name Over Bellator Title Amidst Khabib’s Mockery of Ireland MMA

For Paul Hughes, beating a Nurmagomedov means more than just winning a belt. Ahead of his fight against Usman Nurmagomedov, Hughes was asked what would feel better – becoming Bellator champion or handing the Nurmagomedov family their first loss. 

Without hesitation, Hughes chose the latter. With Khabib downplaying Irish MMA, Hughes feels like this fight is about pride, not just gold. Taking down Usman isn’t just personal – it’s a statement. For Hughes, getting his hand raised against a Nurmagomedov will resonate far beyond the cage, and he’s determined to make it happen.

In an interview, Hughes simply stated his intention to be the first person to defeat a Nurmagomedov. 

“Well the Nurmagomedov’s have been beaten before or have they? No that is a good question, to me it is more important to beat them for sure than to defend the belt. The belt is going to be a nice little prize a the end but to beat him is a life changing opportunity for me.”

Khabib, however, isn’t backing down from his claim that Dagestani fighters are miles ahead of Irish MMA. Ahead of Paul Hughes’ fight with Usman, Khabib bluntly stated, “Ireland don’t have fighters, brother”. He has since been criticized by many for disrespecting Ireland and overstating Dagestan’s achievements. 

Former UFC middleweight fighter Darren Till also pushed back, arguing that Ireland’s success is impressive given its size, but Khabib doubled down. He insisted Dagestan dominates amateur and pro-MMA globally, with champs and contenders across all major promotions. With Islam, Usman, and Umar continuing their streaks, Khabib feels the results speak for themselves.

In response to this, Hughes took a few shots at Khabib as well.

Hughes calls Dagestani fighters out for allegedly doping

Hughes threw some shade at Usman for his past failed drug test that overturned his win against Brent Primus. Usman’s win over Primus had been overturned after he had tested positive for a banned substance, resulting in a six-month suspension.

He has since been trolling Khabib, making statements like how the fight with Conor McGregor at UFC 229 had made him famous, which is technically not an inaccurate statement. Khabib only became a global name after he beat McGregor and won the lightweight title.

Hughes also honed in on the popular notion that Khabib’s manager Ali Abdelaziz writes all social media posts for them and tweeted:

Hughes will hope to back this trash up when he fights Usman on January 25 at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai in what will be the biggest fight of his professional MMA career.