Will Justin Gaethje become the first man to beat Khabib Nurmagomedov?
An undisputed lightweight champion will officially be crowned this Saturday as the highly anticipated bout between Nurmagomedov and Gaethje will take place. Coming in, the 31-year-old is at the peak of his career as Gaethje proved that he was a top lightweight by knocking out Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 back in May.
Gaethje has managed to finish every opponent he’s fought in the UFC and has won 20 matches by TKO or submission in his overall career. While Gaethje doesn’t have the undefeated streak of Nurmagomedov, his explosiveness and punching power can easily throw off the 155-pound champion.
However, Khabib isn’t 28-0 for no reason as the 32-year-old has fended off excellent strikers such as Conor McGregor thanks to his superior ground game and wrestling ability. Nurmagomedov essentially dominated in his last championship fight against Dustin Poirier at UFC 242, so the champion hasn’t shown much signs of weakness leading up to the big match-up at UFC 254.
Justin Gaethje vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov should go down as one of the more interesting fights of 2020 due to the contrast of styles for both men. However, before the title fight occurs, check out the training regime for both athletes on the UFC countdown documentary: