Khabib Nurmagomedov bounced back from UFC 'loss' by hammering KO'd opponent through the floor
03/30/2025 09:05 AM
Khabib Nurmagomedov famously went 29-0 during his legendary run in mixed martial arts.
Many people claim the legendary former UFC lightweight world champion barely lost a round during his career, which ended in 2020 after three straight stoppage wins over Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, and Justin Gaethje.
However, Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s hype train was almost derailed at UFC 148 in July 2012.
‘The Eagle’ entered as the underdog against Gleison Tibau, who managed to stop all 13 of the Russian wrestler’s takedown attempts, land one of his own, and outstrike him to seemingly do enough to win a decision – but that’s not what happened.
- READ MORE: Khabib Nurmagomedov's ice cold prediction for street fight with UFC nemesis Conor McGregor
Khabib Nurmagomedov bounced back from UFC ‘loss’ with KO
Bizarrely, all three judges scored the fight 30-27 in favor of Nurmagomedov, who cried when the controversial decision was announced.
UFC legend Joe Rogan was stunned by the scorecards, saying ‘Wow’ after they were confirmed.
Nurmagomedov was 18-0, but looked like a man with a point to prove in his next outing.
The 36-year-old fight legend squared off against Thiago Tavares at UFC Sao Paulo in January 2013.
After a tentative opening minute, Nurmagomedov leaped in with a devastating punch to drop Tavares.
The hometown favorite crashed to the floor before being finished with a series of nasty ground strikes.
Nurmagomedov dropped elbows that had Tavares’ head bouncing on the floor after he’d been rendered unconscious in a statement win from the lightweight prospect, who is arguably the best 155lb fighter of all time.
Will Khabib Nurmagomedov ever fight again?
In October 2024, Nurmagomedov responded to rumors about his potential return to the UFC.
"There is no chance, none. Not even 1%, minus [chance]," he said.
"If you guys need champions, I'm helping my brothers to become champions… We have Islam [Makhachev] as a champion, we have Umar [Nurmagomedov] as the next contender, we have Usman [Nurmagomedov] as champion – we have a lot of champions.
"You guys are never going to miss me because in our team and our gym, we create champions – you guys are always going to have champions, don't worry."
