UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov sympathized with lightweight contender Arman Tsarukyan following his sudden withdrawal from UFC 311.
UFC 311 suffered a last-second loss to Arman Tsarukyan, who withdrew from the main event with Islam Makhachev due to a back injury. Just hours before he was scheduled to appear ahead of their lightweight title fight on Friday, Tsarukyan informed UFC matchmakers of a lingering back injury that will keep him from competing this weekend.
Tsarukyan will be replaced by Renato Moicano, who was set to face Beneil Dariush in a UFC 311 main card fight. Dariush will not be replaced anytime soon and was completely removed from the event.
Tsarukyan's withdrawal comes after a long-awaited UFC lightweight title win after four straight wins. He secured the title by defeating a former title holder via split decision at UFC 300.
Khabib Nurmagomedov, a UFC Hall of Famer and arguably the greatest lightweight of all time, withdrew from several high-profile fights during his career. As he prepares to corner Makhachev at UFC 311, he understands what Tsarukyan is going through after the disappointing setback outside the cage.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Khabib Nurmagomedov reacts to Arman Tsarukyan's withdrawal at UFC 311
In a recent interview with the UFC social media team, Nurmagomedov responded to the last-minute changes at UFC 311.
“To be honest, I found out about it yesterday at 1 a.m., before I went to sleep,” Nurmagomedov said. “Honestly, it can happen to anyone. It happened to me too in March 2017. Then I went to the hospital, had surgery, came back and told the UFC, 'It was my fault, give me another man, I'm going to beat this man and earn my title shot.'
“It was the same with me. I just want to wish him all the best. He's young, he's tough, he can come back. He will have to survive this situation and come back.”
Nurmagomedov then gave his initial thoughts on Makhachev versus Moicano.
“Moicano has a lot of experience in the UFC, 10-11 years in the UFC. Four fight win streak, and he's in his prime. It's a good fight,” Nurmagomedov explained. “Of course it's not like Arman and Islam, but it's still very competitive and we're not going to underestimate him.”
Moicano enters the UFC 311 headliner with plenty of momentum as he prepares to face the UFC's pound-for-pound No. 1 fighter. He has won four straight fights, including a brutal finish over Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC Paris in September.
Nurmagomedov has been at the center of several high-profile fight cancellations during his career, most notably several booking attempts against Tony Ferguson. He withdrew from back-to-back bookings against Donald Cerrone due to a torn meniscus suffered in fight camp.
Khabib Nurmagomedov withdrew from several fights due to injury
After a slew of injury problems, Nurmagomedov established himself as an all-time great, a fate Tsarukyan will look to replicate. Nurmagomedov defeated the likes of Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje during his Hall of Fame career.
At the time of writing, a timeline for Tsarukyan's next fight is uncertain as he appears to be making a full recovery from his back injury. Before UFC 311, he earned the title by defeating Charles Oliveira at UFC 300 last April.
After spending a full game planning for Tsarukyan, Nurmagomedov supports the talented lightweight's upcoming path to redemption after UFC 311. Time will tell if Makhachev and Tsarukyan will rebook their highly anticipated rematch for a later date.
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