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Ali Abdelaziz Says Khabib Considering Floyd Mayweather Fight at End of UFC Deal
November 21, 2018
Ali Abdelaziz, the manager for UFC fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov, has said the MMA star would happily take on Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a boxing bout when his deal with the UFC expires.
Nurmagomedov has one fight left on his contract with the UFC and was dominant against Conor McGregor in his previous outing. Since that win, there has been some buzz about Nurmagomedov potentially following in the Irishman's footsteps and facing Mayweather in the ring.
TMZ caught up with Abdelaziz and said that the option is there to make the fight once Nurmagomedov's UFC stint is at an end.
"We have one fight left on his UFC contract," said Abdelaziz. "If the UFC want to do a boxing fight, we down. ... Maybe we can fight Floyd at the end of the year, or 2019. But for right now, Khabib is a UFC fighter, (UFC President) Dana White is our partner, and we are going to respect him."
Per TMZ, White has previously made it clear he wouldn't give permission for the Russian to take on Mayweather while he remains under contract with the UFC.
Nurmagomedov's manager added he feels as though the UFC star would have enough to beat Mayweather in any discipline as things stand.
He also advised the boxer to sort out some life insurance if the pair were ever to face off "because he's not going to be walking anymore. He's going to be drinking water [through a] straw."
Mayweather told TMZ he would be willing to go up against the UFC star in a boxing bout as it would be a more lucrative occasion:
"They said it has to happen in the Octagon, and I said, 'You just tell me where Khabib has made nine figures before in the Octagon.' If he hasn't made nine figures, he's not the A side. I'm the A side, so if you guys want the fight to happen, you must come my way. My way, my rules."
Mayweather is set to be in action for the first time since his meeting with McGregor against Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa on December 31.
The head of the Rizin Fighting Federation, Nobuyuki Sakakibara, has said that the contest will be a three-round exhibition and will not go on the professional record of either competitor, per the Associated Press (h/t ABC News).
McGregor broke new ground in combat sports when he changed codes from MMA to boxing; Mayweather, who beat the Irishman with a 10th-round stoppage in August 2017, was his first-ever professional opponent in boxing.