It’s understandable why so many eyes will be on Khabib Nurmagomedov when he hits the scale on Friday ahead of his fight against Edson Barboza at UFC 219.
The last time Nurmagomedov was expected to compete was back in March when he was forced to drop off the card following a disastrous weight cut that ended with him in the hospital rather than facing Tony Ferguson for the interim lightweight championship.
Now nine months later, Nurmagomedov is ready to compete again but this time he brought on board nutritionist Tyler Minton, who works with numerous UFC fighters including light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier as well as featherweight champ Max Holloway.
Minton updated Nurmagomedov’s progression with a photo on Tuesday along with good news about where he’s at just a few days ahead of the weigh-ins for UFC 219.
? The UFC wants fighters no higher than 10% of their weight class on arrival. Two meals and a lot of water later, @TeamKhabib weighs in more than a pound UNDER. Sorry haters… ? #nutritionist #lockhartandleith #khabibnurmagomedov #ufc219 pic.twitter.com/AksT9X7hhA
— Tyler Melee Minton (@TheMeleeWay) December 26, 2017
That’s good news not only for Nurmagomedov but for the co-main event at UFC 219 as his fight against Barboza could potentially determine the next No. 1 contender in the lightweight division.
Nurmagomedov has struggled with his weight several times in the past but the addition of a well-respected and highly regarded nutritionist seems to be paying off as he prepares for his first fight in 2017.
The UFC 219 weigh-ins will go down early Friday morning from Las Vegas as all of the fighters on the card will step on the scale between 9 to 11 a.m. local time before the ceremonial weigh-ins are held later in the day.
