Khabib Nurmagomedov called on UFC president Dana White to organise fight for him at the Barcelona’s Camp Nou stadium. The UFC lightweight champion’s demand of the famed venue in Spain comes after he attended Barcelona’s UEFA Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) on Wednesday.
The retired Russian MMA star was a guest at the 100,000-seater venue as Mauricio Pochettino's PSG claimed a comfortable Champions League last-16 first-leg victory against hosts Barca. The high-octane match belonged to PSG’s 22-year-old sensation Kylian Mbappe, who scored a hat-trick and Moise Kean's header turned the clash on its head. The French champions ran riot, winning 4-1.
Nurmagomedov, who is known to be a fan of Barcelona’s La Liga rivals Real Madrid, filmed a video of himself in the Camp Nou stands and called out White over a probable fight. The Eagle of Dagestan, in an Instagram live session, said, "Hey Dana you here? Let's make the fight here 100,000 people, let's go!"Surprisingly, in its 28-year old history, the UFC has never hosted a match on Spanish soil. After the Champions League game, the 32-year-old received signed shirts from the man of the moment Mbappe and goalkeeper Keylor Navas. He even posed for a photo with the Navas.
Meanwhile, the Russian champion has not entered the octagonal ring since retiring from the UFC in October last year. He hung up his gloves after the first fight since the loss of his influential father Abdulmanap.
But he is an avid football fan and on a couple of occasions has joked that he going to make his debut on the pitch. However, he did receive an offer from third-tier Russian football side FC Kamaz, who showed interest to take the MMA fighter on trial. He also revealed that he had a word last week with PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi over his childhood dream to pursue a career in the world’s favourite game.