The spinning wheel of potential opponents for Khabib Nurmagomedov eventually landed on the face of Al Iaquinta.
With just about 30 hours to go until Nurmagomedov takes to the Octagon, he found out who he’d be sharing the cage with and it’s safe to say that he hasn’t had the chance to prepare for the strengths of his opponent as he’s had to mentally change tack on several occasions.
This time last week, the undefeated Russian was getting ready to take on interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson, only for ‘El Cucuy’ to withdraw from UFC 223 with an injury.
It was the fourth time in just over two years that Nurmagomedov vs. Ferguson has been cancelled but a saviour arrived on Easter Sunday in the form of Max Holloway.
Holloway agreed to take on the most terrifying lightweight on the planet on just six days’ notice but the weight-cutting challenge that lay ahead of him was no joke, according to top nutritionist George Lockhart.
Weigh-in day arrived and Nurmagomedov took to the scales at a lean 154.5lbs.
Then everything got wacky.
Holloway was declared medically unfit to fight by the New York State Athletic Commission and although ‘Blessed’ was determined to keep cutting weight, he was pulled from the Brooklyn card.
. @TeamKhabib my brother I want to keep going but they are stopping me. Sorry to your team and the fans. You don’t deserve this. This is number one. Shout outs to you and @Showtimepettis . Give the fans what they deserve
— Max Holloway (@BlessedMMA) April 6, 2018
With Holloway out, UFC officials immediately turned to the other lightweights on the card as potential replacements because as intriguing as the strawweight championship rematch between Rose Namajunas and Joanna Jędrzejczyk is, it doesn’t exactly make for a pay-per-view hit.
The list of candidates read as follows – Anthony Pettis, Al Iaquinta, Paul Felder and Evan Dunham.
Pettis had been scheduled to face Michael Chiesa, the fighter who sustained lacerations to his face in Conor McGregor’s bus attack a day earlier, but after Chiesa was ruled out of the contest, Pettis still had to weigh in so that he would be paid by the UFC.
‘Showtime’ was considered the early front-runner for the Nurmagomedov fight as he has the highest profile and once held the UFC lightweight title.
Pettis weighed in at 155.2lbs but NYSAC regulations allowed him two hours to shed the excess .2lbs if he was interested in fighting for the title.
Apparently, a disagreement over Pettis’ purse is what ultimately got in the way of the fight being made and he remains off the card.
Paul Felder was the next potential stand-in explored and he appeared a more straightforward option because he’d already made 155lbs.
“Championship weight!” Felder proudly declared as he stood on the scales.
But Nurmagomedov vs. Felder immediately hit a snag as the NYSAC would not allow an unranked fighter to fight for a world title against one of the best in the division.
I tried to get it. Commission is stopping it
— Paul Felder (@felderpaul) April 6, 2018
That argument seems nothing short of ridiculous due to the fact that the rankings are the UFC’s own, are voted upon by little-known media members and are taken seriously by very few in the sport.
Pettis was out, Felder was out and then, all of a sudden, Felder’s scheduled opponent became the favourite to headline UFC 223.
Al Iaquinta’s issues with the UFC over the years have been well-documented and he recently spent two years away from fighting to focus on his real estate business.
But he returned last April and knocked out Diego Sanchez in the first round and while he may only be ranked at 11th in the division, the UFC decided to give him the green light to attempt to shock the world by handing Nurmagomedov the first defeat of his professional career.
Unfortunately, ‘Ragin’ Al is not eligible to win the lightweight title even if he does upset Nurmagomedov as he too weighed in officially at 155.2lbs and by the time the UFC began looking for a replacement for Holloway, it was too late for Iaquinta to re-weigh but the main event represents a huge opportunity for the 30-year-old.
The only New Yorker on the entire card, Iaquinta will receive a rousing welcome when he headlines his first ever UFC event.
*UPDATE* – UFC President Dana White subsequently claimed that Iaquinta would internally be considered the UFC lightweight champion if he manages to beat Nurmagomedov but also insisted that the title wouldn’t be recognised by the New York State Athletic Commission
