Khabib Nurmagomedov returned to the UFC on Saturday and made a major statement, defeating Dustin Poirier to retain his lightweight title at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi.
The undefeated Dagestani improved his record to 28-0 with the win, submitting 'The Diamond' via rear naked choke in the third round of the pair's five-round main event contest.
The fight and victory were the lightweight king's first in the 11 months since he overshadowed his win over Conor McGregor at UFC 229 in Las Vegas by scaling the cage and jumping into the crowd to fight members of the Irishman's entourage.
Re-live all the action from Abu Dhabi below:
The UFC have booked Nate Diaz vs Jorge Masvidal for November 2nd at Madison Square Garden in New York.
UFC president Dana White has said that the mouthwatering clash will headline UFC 244, despite it not being a title fight. I don't think anyone is going to argue against seeing those two battle for five rounds...
Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Dustin Poirier
Edson Barboza vs Paul Felder
Islam Makhachev vs Davi Ramos
Curtis Blaydes vs Shamil Abdurakhimov
Mairbek Taisumov vs Carlos Diego Ferreira
So, you're in for a good evening...
"He [another journalist] asked me yesterday about why I didn't come to media.
"I said, 'I come but I don't talk with media.' I come, sit down and leave.
"But why don't I talk with media? Because the last three months, same question.
"Father? What do you think about Dustin? Do you respect him? How is your training camp?
"Like 90 per cent, all the same.
"Right now, same thing. Right now I want to leave they say, 'No you have to go.'
"You guys say 90 per cent the same question.
"How many times do I give answers about my father? Maybe this week 15 or 20. One question."
Please allow a moment for the live blog to load
"Right now, I feel this hunger," Nurmagomedov said before this fight. "I feel this motivation, this fire, and that's why I stay focused. I want to stay busy. I want to stay hungry. I want to stay focused, humble. This is the key."
Nurmagomedov returns to face Poirier (21-5, 1 no-contest), who claimed an interim lightweight title belt during Nurmagomedov's suspension by beating Max Holloway.
Unlike the theatrics around his bout last year with McGregor, Nurmagomedov has a clear mutual respect with Poirier. Instead of a clash of personalities, this fight will be a contrast of style and strengths.
"My last fight, it was a little bit crazy and tough fight," Nurmagomedov said. "But now I have an opponent I want to show respect to, and it's all about respect. That's why we both show respect. But when the cage closes, it's going to be a very good, high-level matchup."
