He performed well enough against Dvalishvili to warrant some shouts for an immediate rematch, but his injury quieted those discussions rather quickly. In the meantime, “The Machine” chugged along, defending his belt twice more against Sean O’Malley and Cory Sandhagen, and booking a potential fourth defense against Petr Yan at UFC 323. Arguably, Nurmagomedov performed the best between Dvalishvili’s three foes in 2025, but with activity top-of-mind, Nurmagomedov is happy to face the surging Mario Bautista at UFC 321: Aspinall vs Gane.
Nurmagomedov thinks highly of Bautista, complimenting his striking and movement in particular. The American rides into the fight on an 8-fight winning streak, most recently defeating José Aldo and Patchy Mix.
Fight By Fight Preview | UFC 321: Aspinall vs Gane
“I think any victory will give one more opportunity, another opportunity to fight for the title,” Nurmagomedov said. “Who else [is there]? There is almost nobody.
“Even right now, I can fight for the title I think because everybody is interested in this fight. Me and Merab, this is a fight all the fans want. It’s one of the [most] interesting fights in the UFC, not just in our weight, but I don’t want to [wait] too long.”
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