Ireland’s Hughes came into the fight as a significant underdog with the bookmakers, but he produced a thrilling performance to push Nurmagomedov harder than we’ve ever seen before on the world stage as he hung with the Russian world champion through all five rounds. Such was Hughes’ performance, there was genuine uncertainty as the pair awaited the judges’ scores.
Nurmagomedov started well and settled into his work faster, but Hughes’ compact, unruffled approach ensured that the champion constantly had a problem to solve as the fight wore on.
That problem became more complex as Hughes started to apply more pressure the longer the fight wore on, and by the midway point in the fight, it felt like the Irishman was starting to take over as he pushed the pace and started to dig heavy punches to Nurmagomedov’s body, while constantly hammering his opponent’s lead leg with chopping leg kicks. Then Nurmagomedov received a one-point deduction for a second groin shot in quick succession as the momentum appeared to swing firmly in Hughes’ favour.
But, at a crucial point in the fight, with Hughes looking close to taking over, a clash of heads paused the action, and Nurmagomedov wisely used all of the available injury timeout to fully recover. Once the action resumed, a well-timed takedown took Hughes off his feet and effectively halted the momentum he’d worked so hard to build up.
The pair continued to battle back and forth all the way to the final bell, before the judges returned a majority decision, with one judge scoring the bout 47-47, while the other two saw it 48-46.
Hughes was gutted by the final result, but immediately called for a rematch in Belfast, while Nurmagomedov admitted that he’d massively underestimated his opponent, as he paid tribute to Hughes for giving him 25 unexpectedly (for him) hard minutes of resistance.
In the end, it felt like a win-win for the PFL, whose champion remained undefeated, while a new star was born, with Hughes proving that he belonged among MMA’s lightweight elite.
PFL Champions Series: Official results
MAIN CARD
- Usman Nurmagomedov def. Paul Hughes via majority decision (47-47, 48-46, 48-46) – for lightweight title
- Vadim Nemkov def. Tim Johnson via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:08
- Akhmed Magomedov def. Nathan Kelly via submission (rear-naked choke) Round 2, 4:22
- Ibragim Ibragimov def. Kenny Mokhonoana via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Renat Khavalov def. Cleiver Fernandes (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Ahmed Sami def. Tarek Suleiman via TKO (ground strikes) – Round 1, 5:00
- Mirafzal Akhtamov def. Mike Thompson via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 2:50
- Hadi Omar Al Hussaini def. Ruel Panales via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
- John Mitchell def. Souhl Tairi via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Haider Khan def. Mostafa Nada via TKO (injury) – Round 1, 3:18
