According to UFC President Dana White, No. 2-ranked Umar Nurmagomedov is next in line for a title shot against reigning bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili. However, Nurmagomedov might have irritated White and the rest of the UFC brass with an image he posted on his social media on Sunday.
Nurmagomedov has been embroiled in a feud with Dvalishvili on social media. Dvalishvili’s perceived hesitation to face Nurmagomedov in his first title defense—after winning the belt in September in the main event of Noche UFC—is at the root of the conflict.
Dvalishvili took to social media on Saturday morning to praise No. 3-ranked Petr Yan’s win over Deiveson Figueiredo. Yan challenged Dvalishvili to a rematch, as the champion defeated him in March 2023, and Dvalishvili accepted.
This sparked a tirade on social media from Nurmagomedov. Some suspect that Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, runs his social media account, but a short video featuring Nurmagomedov was posted to refute those suspicions.
Amid the string of posts, Nurmagomedov shared an image of himself working out alongside his cousin and former lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov. In the image, Umar is wearing a PFL T-shirt.
The PFL (Professional Fighters League) is a rival mixed martial arts organization that currently has Umar’s cousin, Usman Nurmagomedov, under contract. Usman is the Bellator welterweight champion, a title now owned by the PFL.
It’s entirely possible Umar was simply wearing a random T-shirt available to him—especially if Usman was in the gym and, as family, they share clothing.
However, the peculiar aspect is that someone chose to post an image of a high-profile UFC fighter wearing a PFL T-shirt.
White has criticized the PFL throughout the year, focusing on its acquisition of Bellator and other business decisions. The biggest sticking point for White has been related to former UFC heavyweight champion and reigning PFL Super Fights champion Francis Ngannou.
Ngannou left the UFC as its heavyweight champion and signed with the PFL. After scoring a KO win over Renan Ferreira in his only MMA bout since leaving the UFC, many still consider Ngannou the lineal heavyweight champion of the world.
Ngannou’s departure represents perhaps the only significant loss the UFC has suffered in fighter acquisition and retention. Beyond the natural competition between the two promotions, Ngannou’s situation has added to the tension.
That tension makes it unusual to see a UFC fighter posting an image of themselves wearing a PFL T-shirt.
We’ll see if Nurmagomedov holds his position as the next challenger for Dvalishvili. Nurmagomedov will not fight during Ramadan (Feb. 28–March 25), and Dvalishvili seems to want to fight in March. If Nurmagomedov doesn’t get the first shot, it won’t be because of the T-shirt; it’ll be because Dvalishvili is ready to defend and doesn’t want to wait for the challenger.
