UFC 242: Khabib Nurmagomedov defeats Dustin Poirier in Abu Dhabi

It was an electric fight as Khabib returned to UFC…

It was one of the most anticipated mixed martial arts (MMA) fights of the year, and Khabib Nurmagomedov gave fans the result they’d been hoping for as he defeated Dustin Poirier at The Arena, Yas Island to be crowned the UFC lightweight champion in Abu Dhabi.

Poirier tapped out in the third round after 2 minutes and six seconds, and 30-year-old Khabib remains undefeated from an impressive 28 fights.

Upon his victory, a hyped Khabib Nurmagomedov leapt out of the cage towards his team and UFC president Dana White in celebration.

Speaking afterwards, Khabib said “I want to say thank you so much to all of my family, my team, my brothers, my uncles – we have grown up together, we have all done this together. MMA is about respect, this is what we showed tonight.”

After the fight, the two MMA fighters exchanged T-shirts in a respectful display of sportsmanship, with Khabib saying he would auction off Poirier’s shirts, and donate the proceed’s to his rival’s charity.

You can catch the highlights from the exhilarating fight right here:

Some 13,000 fans turned out to the brand new The Arena on Yas Island, which has been purpose built for UFC events.

But ahead of the final fight, there was plenty of action in the octagon for UFC fans.

Here’s a full breakdown of the UFC 242 fight card, and the victorious MMA star from each fight:

Main card

Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Dustin Poirier

W: Khabib Nurmagomedov

Edson Barboza vs Paul Felder

W: Paul Felder

Islam Makhachev vs Davi Ramos

W: Islam Makhachev

Curtis Blaydes vs Shamil Abdurakhimov

W: Curtis Blaydes

Mairbek Taisumov vs Carlos Diego Ferreira

W: Carlos Diego Ferreira

Preliminary card

Joanne Calderwood vs Andrea Lee

W: Joanne Calderwood

Zubaira Tukhugov vs Lerone Murphy

Resulted in a split draw

Liana Jojua vs Sarah Moras

W: Sarah Moras

Ottman Azaitar vs Teemu Packalen

W: Ottman Azaitar

Early preliminary card

Belal Muhammad vs Takashi Sato

W: Belal Muhammad

Nordine Taleb vs Muslim Salikhov

W: Muslim Salikhov

Omari Akhmedov vs Zak Cummings

W: Omari Akhmedov

Don Madge vs Fares Ziam

W: Don Madge

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Images: What’s On and UFC