SHARE
UFC 209 Ferguson Khabib
UFC 209 Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson poster.

It’s one of the most hotly anticipated Lightweight matches in UFC history, Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson have finally agreed to fight and will meet at UFC 209, March 4 in Las Vegas.

The event will take place inside the T-Mobile Arena and will be for the interim Lightweight title, with 155lb champion Conor McGregor out of action whilst he awaits the arrival of his first child.

Seemingly, the announcement of the fight stalled due to Ferguson being dissatisfied with his reported pay. In the wake of this, Nurmagomedov took to Twitter to offer Ferguson $200,000 – of his own money – to help push the fight through.

Despite saying on The MMA Hour that he wouldn’t take any money away from Khabib or his family, the bout has finally been agreed and officially takes the co-main event spot at UFC 209.

After being sidelined for two years, Nurmagomedov (24-0) returned in 2016 and fought twice, as he ran through both Darrell Horcher and Michael Johnson before branding McGregor a “chicken.”

Meanwhile, Ferguson (22-3) has impressed in his own right, with many believing him to be the rightful number one contender at 155lbs. Currently riding a nine-fight win streak, last year “El Cucuy” beat rising star Lando Vannata before dominating former champion Rafael dos Anjos.

A win for either competitor will likely set up a title unification with McGregor at the tail end of 2017.

Also set for UFC 209, Welterweight champion Tyron Woodley and Stephen Thompson will meet in a rematch of their UFC 205 majority draw.