LAS VEGAS – Umar Nurmagomedov met the media Saturday after his win over Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 324.
Nurmagomedov (20-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) outworked former flyweight champion Figueiredo (25-6-1 MMA, 14-6-1 UFC) for a unanimous decision to close out the prelims at T-Mobile Arena.
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Nurmagomedov, at upwards of 16-1 odds, was the biggest betting favorite on the UFC’s debut on Paramount+, and in essence did what he had to do for clear-cut win. Nurmagomedov said what he experienced in the cage with Figueiredo, who missed weight for the fight by 2.5 pounds, was not necessarily what he expected from a former titleholder.
“I was expecting it was going to be more hard, and it was easier than my sparring partners – Manel Kape gave me more hard times in the last few months, and ‘Tiger’ Magomed Magomedov,” Nurmagomedov said at his post-fight news conference. “I tried to do my best. I tried to fight like a killer and go ahead, but when your opponent is not engaging, it’s kind of hard to show a competitive fight.”
Now the recent bantamweight title challenger said he’s not putting extra pressure on himself to get back to a shot at the belt, but wants to stay active to get back there organically.
Later at UFC 324, in the co-main event, former champion Sean O’Malley made his case to get a title shot against new champion Petr Yan when he beat Song Yadong. The title picture suddenly is crowded at 135 pounds with Yan, ex-champ Merab Dvalishvili in line for a rematch, O’Malley and Nurmagomedov.
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“I don’t know what’s going to happen next, exactly,” Nurmagomedov said. “Just one thing I know: I will ask to fight. It doesn’t matter if it’s for the title. It doesn’t matter if it’s going to be the winner of this fight, Yadong or O’Malley. I don’t care. I really don’t care. I just want to be active. I just want to fight. I don’t want to be the guy sitting down, waiting, ‘When are they going to give me a chance?’ No. I’m going to come take the chance, fight again tof the title, and I’m going to take it.”
Check out Nurmagomedov’s post-fight interview in the video above.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Umar Nurmagomedov discusses possible title shot after UFC 324
