UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has never lost, and never even lost a round in the UFC, a record that some liken to that of prizefighter Floyd Mayweather, who stopped former UFC lightweight champ Conor McGregor in one of the most lucrative boxing matches in history. At the UFC 229 press conference in New York, 'The Eagle' made the case. "I am the Floyd Mayweather in MMA," argued Nurmagmedov. "Right now, I am most active and dominant UFC champion. This is my third fight in last nine months and 26-0, never lose round. I don't know what [McGregor] is talking about. I don't understand what he gonna do 6 October. He think whiskey gonna help him?" H/T MMA Weekly

Ryan Hall: “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little exasperated waiting for a fight the past two years. You can feel the years slipping away and years that are your prime."

UFC Hall of Famer Matt Serra is 44, some four years younger than Chuck Liddell, who is having a trilogy fight this year vs. Tito Ortiz, 43. However, 'The Terra' retired in 2010, and explains why. "I always say an aging fighter is like an aging stripper," explained Serra. "Fighters, they're not as funny. An aging stripper is funny. But who wants to see that? I don't want to take my shirt off on TV. ... Here's when I knew it was time not to fight anymore. Usually, when someone would say they want to fight me, back in the day, I'd get pissed off, and I'd be like, 'oh really? You just made the mistake of your life, motherf@$%er' And I remember, literally, I was on my iPhone and I was about to go to the park with my kid, and I saw someone call me out, and I was like, ‘I don't give a s***.' That's when I knew it was over." H/T MMA Fighting

Antonio Rogerio 'Little Nog' Nogueira smashed Sam Alvey on Saturday at UFC Fight Night 137, and then the 42 year old, whose brother 'Big Nog' retired in 2015, detailed the trials leading up to the fight, which including a back injury that left him unable to train early in the camp, and an infection that hospitalized him for ten days a month before the fight. “I intend on coming back to fight,” said Nogueira. “I want to come back. I want to feel the octagon again. For as long as I can train well. And if my back injury doesn’t put me to the side, I intend on fighting again. ... I’m 42. I think in the UFC, there’s not many fighters my age. Dan Henderson and Randy Couture fought at 44, 45 years old. But definitely I have to think about my retirement. It’s not something out of the question, but I think tonight’s performance maybe will put that to the side a little bit more. I intend on fighting this year again; I’m going to ask to see if I can fight before the end of the year, or the beginning of next year.” H/T MMAjunkie

Lightweight Patricky Freire set a new promotion record for finishes via strikes with a KO win over Roger Huerta at Bellator 205 on Friday. Now he wants a shot at division champion Brent Primus. “I’m going to take your belt, and take your head,” he promised. ... "I wait to beat the champion and take my belt. He’s the best because he is the champion. I am ready. I’m the No. 1 contender."

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UFC Fight 137 in Sao Paulo, Brazil saw four $50,000 performance bonuses awarded: Fight of the Night: Thiago Santos vs. Eryk Anders, Performance of the Night: Charles Oliveira, Performance of the Night: Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

Former UFC heavyweight title challenger Jeff Monson recently received Russian citizenship and offered TASS a fight prediction for UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. former champ Conor McGregor at UFC 229 on October 6. "Khabib will be destroying Conor during all five rounds of the fight. I do not think he wants to finish the fight quickly, he will exhaust the opponent, and then he will decide how to win."