Staredown of the Year 2013: Nurmagomedov vs. Trujillo

image via Esther Lin/MMAFighting

What is a guy with a 19-0 record heading into his 4th UFC fight doing leading off the FX prelims, and what does he have to do to get the attention he deserves? In the case of Khabib Nurmagomedov, maybe getting into a shoving match with Abel Trujillo ahead of their UFC 160 bout did the trick. Of course when you get a big reaction out of ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson, who had the best ticket in the house to that Vegas Friday night weigh-in, well, that never hurts either.

Nurmagomedov would go on to set a record against Trujillo when he hit 21 out of 27 of his takedowns during the fifteen minutes they spent together inside of the octagon. Another three round unanimous decision victory over the always tough Pat Healy later in the year finally sets up Nurmagomedov against a top ten opponent in Gilbert Melendez. That fight is rumored to take place at UFC 170 in late February.

For Trujillo, well, after the loss to Nurmagomedov he would become Roger Bowling’s new Bobby Voelker, A bout in August between Trujillo and Bowling would be ruled a no contest due to an illegal knee landed by the Blackzilian that rendered Roger unable to continue. The two would fight again on the years final UFC on FOX card where Trujillo would finish off Bowling legally in the second round.