By: Hans Themistode
It’s been quite some time since sure fire first ballot hall of famer Floyd Mayweather Jr has been seen in the ring. However, that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been behind the scenes trying to make things happen.
This is apparently the case according to Abdulmanap, the father of UFC Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
It was long thought that Mayweather would ride off into the sunset following his tenth round stoppage win over another UFC star in Conor McGregor, in 2017. That aforementioned contest reportedly netted Mayweather close to 300 million.
Discussions of the two polarizing figures running back the contest never materialized. Instead, Mayweather seemed content with living the retired life. However, as of late, Mayweather has seemingly been in discussions with his former rival, Manny Pacquiao.
The two settled their long standing feud in the ring back in 2015. Mayweather would win via unanimous decision, although Pacquiao has said on numerous occasions that he was not 100 percent for their contest, citing a torn rotator cuff for his shortcomings in the contest.
A rematch between the two has been in discussions for quite some time now, but Mayweather has seemingly switched his focus to Nurmagomedov.
Thoughts of these two sharing the ring with one another has been teased for several years now. Yet, there was never any real traction. Fast forward to today, and it looks as though the possibility has become as real as ever.
“Floyd, I respect your wish to fight Khabib,” said Abdulmanap via Instagram. “At the moment we have our most crucial moment, when he have to hold the best fight in the history of the UFC.”
The contest in which Abdulmanap is speaking of, is his son’s next opponent Tony Ferguson. It will undoubtedly be one of the biggest contests in the history of the UFC.
“Twelve against 12 in a series of victories (in the UFC) and all the fans are waiting for this fight.”
When Abdulmanap says the number twelve, he is speaking of victories in the UFC octagon. Khabib is undefeated in twelve contests for the UFC, while Ferguson is currently on a twelve fight win streak which stretches back to 2013.
“We’ve been preparing for this fight for more than a year. Five months and the fight with Ferguson should take place.”
Abdulmanap’s wish for his son to first fight Tony Ferguson is understandable. They are both arguably the best Lightweights in the UFC, and a contest between the two would end the debate on who is the best in the world.
Although Abdulmanap wants his son to focus on Ferguson, he would like for Khabib to shift his focus following victory over Ferguson.
Abdulmanap however, has made it clear that he will need some time for his son to get fully prepared, which will include calling upon the help of a respected boxing trainer.
“First of all we will need to do some boxing training and we need a camp – with Lomachenko Sr for half a year. Why not!!!”
A match between Khabib and Floyd would take place in a boxing ring, which leads to the belief that Khabib will suffer the same fate of Conor McGregor. It is truly mind boggling that any UFC fighter truly believes that they can defeat one of the best boxers in the world. Even at the age of 42, Floyd Mayweather possesses the sort of skill, you simply can’t teach in a short amount of time.
With Floyd officially receiving the blessing of Khabibs father to make the contest happen, it looks as though the showdown will take place in 2020.
