Usman Nurmagomedov Retains Title, Paul Hughes Disagrees

Usman Nurmagomedov retained his Bellator lightweight championship in Dubai on Saturday but Irish fighter Paul Hughes believes he should have won the bout. The judges scored the fight 47-47, 48-46, and 48-46 in Nurmagomedov’s favor, allowing the champion to retain his belt and extend his unbeaten record to 19-0. However, Hughes criticized the decision, calling it “pretty ridiculous.” He said he would watch the fight again with a clear mind but felt that, based on his perspective and the energy in the arena, the victory was his.

Hughes also expressed his desire for a rematch, emphasizing that the momentum of the fight shifted after a fourth-round stoppage due to a clash of heads. The incident left Hughes with a cut on his forehead, and the referee had Nurmagomedov checked by a doctor before the fight continued. The Russian champion took advantage of the break by landing a takedown in the fourth round and delivering several kicks to Hughes’ thigh in the final round.

Although Paul Hughes acknowledged that he should have pushed harder in the last stages of the fight, he insisted that he was starting to break Usman Nurmagomedov down with body shots and was ready to finish the fight when the head clash disrupted the flow. Hughes remains confident that the two will face each other again, asserting that the fight was far from over and that he was on the brink of turning things in his favor.