Khabib Nurmagomedov has signed a new contract with the UFC which, according to his manager Ali Abdel-Aziz, makes him "the highest-paid athlete in the UFC." Terms of the deal were not announced, but it shouldn't come as a surprise that Dana White backed up the Brinks truck for the undefeated, 30-year old master grappler.
In an interview with MMA Fighting, Abdel-Aziz explained:
“This is why he’s the highest-paid athlete in the UFC today. Believe me. He’s the highest-paid athlete in the UFC today. And I’m saying that again because I see everything. They showed me everything. Khabib is the highest-paid athlete in the UFC and we are happy. It’s time to fight.”
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Khabib's new UFC contract was signed along with the terms for his next fight which will come against interim Lightweight champion Dustin Poirier at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi on September 7.
“We just got a new deal done and we’re extremely happy,” Abdelaziz told Yahoo Sports. “The talks were very professional and smooth and it’s one of the biggest deals in terms of guaranteed money I believe the UFC has ever paid anyone.
“Dana had to go to the pawn shop to sell some things to get the money because I don’t think they had the money in the bank to cover all of this. But Khabib is very happy. We’re going to go through these fights fast.”
Dustin Poirier (25-5, 1 NC) was crowned the interim Lightweight champ after he defeated Max Holloway by unanimous decision at UFC 236 in April. Poirier will enter the highly anticipated championship bout on a six-fight winning streak, which includes victories against Eddie Alvarez, Justin Gaithje and Anthony Pettis.
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