Nurmagomedov beats Hughes in razor-thin rematch

Usman Nurmagomedov broke the heart of Irishman Paul Hughes with another contentious points win to retain his PFL lightweight world title on Friday in Dubai.

Eight months after Nurmagomedov was cast as a lucky winner at the same venue, the Russian was again a narrow victor in the rematch as Hughes produced a brilliant performance over five rounds.

The scorecards did not reflect a close battle as the judges saw it 50-45, 49-46 and 48-47 for Nurmagomedov.

"You want to say this fight was close too? I feel I won every round, but it was a very tough fight with tough opponent. I did not underestimate him, I think he underestimated me," Nurmagomedov said.

Hughes, 28, fought expertly at close range and was a clear winner of rounds two and three, keeping his cool when Nurmagomedov headbutted him after the bell at the end of the first round.

The Irishman was hit with several low blows in round one and four which appeared to slow his progress and were rounds that Nurmagomedov pocketed.

But Hughes recovered each time and rocked Nurmagomedov on several occasions including with a superb kick and body shot combination in the third and a big right hand in the closing stages.

With Hughes mixing his striking, landing knees and short right-handed punches, UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov, the cousin of Usman, could be heard screaming at top volume for Usman to respond.

Khabib's appeals appeared to fall on deaf ears as Usman elected to showboat during spells of the fight.

Throughout the bout, however, Nurmagomedov cut down Hughes' success on the feet by shooting for takedowns, landing three overall including in the final seconds of the last round.

The takedowns were crucial moments of success for Nurmagomedov, despite being unable to carve out any meaningful submission attempts except for in the first round when Hughes did superbly well to fight off a rear-naked choke attempt.

Hughes was able to slip away from every moment of danger on the ground and after escaping the final grappling contest, he said to a retreating Nurmagomedov: "Why are you running?"

Nurmagomedov, 27, celebrated at the final bell, convinced of victory while Hughes cut a figure unsure if he had done enough to dethrone the champion.

Despite the lopsided scorecards, Hughes applauded his rival as the Russian was confirmed the winner.

"They told me I wasn't getting a post-fight interview, but I had to get one to thank my fans for travelling here," Hughes said.

"I will be back, I promise I will be back."

Hughes now faces a rebuilding job, but firmly established himself as world class by going toe-to-toe with Nurmagomedov in two brilliant fights.

Nurmagomedov has long been regarded as one of MMA's premier talents, is now unbeaten in 21 fights but his two bouts with Hughes have proved he is far from untouchable.

Speaking after the contest, Khabib Nurmagomedov hailed the Derry native.

"First of all I want to say thank you Paul, because of this guy we have pushed Usman so hard the last eight moments," he said.

"You can see the improvements he made."

Talks of a trilogy will now fade away with Hughes beaten twice and Nurmagomedov could well be set for a move to the UFC in 2026.

The lightweight has just one fight left on his current deal with the PFL and a compelling storyline awaits him in the UFC's 155lb division after team-mate and former UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev moved up to welterweight.

Hughes, left, has suffered just three defeats in his career, two of them to Nurmagomedov

Takedowns were a key factor in the fight with Nurmagomedov scoring three overall, one in round one, three and five

Nurmagomedov is ony 27 but has 20 wins and one no-contest already under his belt

Briton Davis next for Nurmagomedov?

Nurmagomedov will be eager to close the chapter of his bruising rivalry with Hughes and seemed to confirm Briton Alfie Davis would be next in line.

Davis, 33, won the PFL's 2025 lightweight world tournament this summer.

The Londoner was a huge underdog going into the tournament, but defeated Gadzhi Rabadanov on points to claim the title and £369,000 in prize money.

With uncertainty around who Nurmagomedov's next contender would be, the Russian appeared to select Davis.

"Who is the handsome guy from England, Alfie Davis?," he said.

"Anytime, anywhere, I am waiting for you."

As for Hughes, he is signed to a long-term deal with the PFL and has a host of options.

He could fight American Archie Coglhan, who would have been hopeful his win over New Zealander Jay Jay Wilson on the undercard made him the number one lightweight contender before Nurmagomedov called out Davis.