Will Umar Nurmagomedov rise to the occasion?

As the UFC returns to the United Arab Emirates, all eyes shift focus to Umar Nurmagomedov. He takes on the tough challenge of facing the ever-dynamic Cory Sandhagen and will be looking for the best win of his career by a country mile.

Will he rise to the occasion? Is Umar Nurmagomedov ready for the bantamweight division’s elite, even possible a shot at Sean O’Malley? This weekend is his opportunity to answer those questions.

Umar Nurmagomedov: Getting to the scales

Umar Nurmagomedov dons a great weight on his shoulders. With his last name, much is expected of the Dagestani native. His brother, Usman Nurmagomedov, is a champion in Bellator. His cousin: Khabib Nurmagomedov. Fans and analysts alike are quite expectant of Umar Nurmagomedov with these accolades alone. Add his perfect 17-0 record on top of this and the hype surrounding the Dagestani has hit critical levels.

So why the hesitation? In deeper MMA circles, some analyst question his level of talent. The main issue is that Nurmagomedov has had a hard time making it to the day of a fight.

He and Sandhagen were originally scheduled to show down in 2023. Umar Nurmagomedov was forced out of that fight with a shoulder injury. By this time, pulling out would be a common theme for the undefeated contender.

The reasons for this we’re clear: Umar Nurmagomedov missed a lot of the contracted fights that he was supposed to take.

It won’t be fair to hold the Hunter Azure fight against him. That fight was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even the fight with Nathaniel Wood is excusable; his uncle and trainer, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov passed away.

But Nurmagomedov was scheduled to face Sergey Morozov at UFC 254 and pulled out due to illness. To his credit that fight was rebooked three months later and he won via a second round rear naked choke. He was scheduled to face Jack Shore, a tough test for Nurmagomedov, in 2022 and pulled out of that fight with no real reason excuse given. And then, of course, the aforementioned Sandhagen fight.

It’s not chronic, like Alex Perez or Manel Kape, in the past. But Umar Nurmagomedov has not been reliable.

That’s not to say he’s not been great. The evidence when he does fight has shown to be the contrary.

Incredible talent

When he does fight, Umar Nurmagomedov is simply spectacular. He’s beat fighters like Brian Kelleher and Raoni Barcelos. Both fighters, while not ranked, have been long-staples to the UFC’s stacked bantamweight division.

At 5-0 in the UFC, Nurmagomedov has three finishes. The only two fighters who went the distance is Nate Maness and Bezkat Almakhan. The fight with Almakhan was closer than most. But the win was clear for Nurmagomedov.

This is what has his fans pulling their hair out. Great as Barcelos and Kelleher are, Umar Nurmagomedov does not have that key signature win. That’s where Cory Sandhagen comes to play.

Sandhagen is one of bantamweight’s best and most difficult fights for anyone. Like Sean O’Malley getting a huge step up in competition in Petr Yan after a few years of “development” fights, Nurmagomedov will be taking on a fighter that is orders of magnitude better than anyone he’s fought before.

Should he win, Nurmagomedov could see himself ranked in the top three, replacing Sandhagen at #2.

This is the occasion to which Umar Nurmagomedov. He has to show up on fight day and make it to the cage. He has to take on the toughest contender in the UFC’s toughest division. A win will continue the legacy of the Dagestani Dynasty.