The legendary former world champion Khabib Nurmagomedov is often noted for having rarely lost even a round during his illustrious career. On his path to lightweight title glory, the Russian fighter completed an astonishing streak of 29 consecutive victories, retiring at the pinnacle of his sport after securing three straight stoppages against high-profile opponents Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier, and Justin Gaethje. Widely regarded as the most dominant fighter in MMA history, Khabib often toyed with his rivals while administering a relentless beating.
However, during one pivotal night early in his UFC career, on the undercard of Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen’s famous rematch, Khabib’s rising star almost faced a significant setback.
Khabib Nurmagomedov faced Gleison Tibau at UFC 148. Following a successful debut in January 2012 against Kamal Shalorus, Khabib was matched against Tibau, a veteran with nearly double the number of professional fights. With 12 UFC outings to his name, Tibau’s experience meant he had already spent almost as many hours in the octagon as the then-undefeated Nurmagomedov, who boasted a record of 17-0.
The Russian fighter, for this unique encounter, entered the match as a slight underdog. Amidst the spectacle of Sonnen, Silva, and other notable personalities like Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz in the main event, Khabib and Tibau’s more subdued styles managed to go under the radar, unnoticed by many fans.
Ultimately, Khabib would carve out one of the greatest careers in fighting history. Yet, he consistently regards Tibau—not the numerous world champions he later triumphed over—as his toughest opponent inside the octagon.
The judges’ decision caused significant controversy following the bout between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Gleison Tibau at UFC 148. Throughout the fight, Khabib found himself stymied as Tibau successfully thwarted all 13 of his takedown attempts. The Brazilian also managed to land a takedown of his own while outstriking Nurmagomedov over the course of three rounds.
As the third round commenced, commentator Joe Rogan stated, “Gleison at this point in the game just simply seems to be the better fighter.” Moments later, he suggested that Nurmagomedov “probably will lose by a decision if nothing changes in the next 50 seconds or so.”
Despite the fight’s flow, all three judges awarded the match to Nurmagomedov, scoring it in his favor across every single round. This decision puzzled Rogan, who, when his commentary partner Mike Goldberg simply exclaimed “wow,” responded with “wow indeed.”
The media’s scorecards told a different story, with six journalists from MMADecisions.com scoring overwhelmingly in Tibau’s favor, with one lone exception. Four of those analysts even rendered a score of 30-27 to Tibau.
The controversy surrounding the fight has remained a topic of heated discussion. During the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, MMAFighting’s Alexander K. Lee provided an in-depth analysis of the fight, ultimately scoring it 30-27 for Nurmagomedov before reviewing the broader statistics and overall discourse surrounding the contest.
Fans have similarly expressed skepticism regarding the fight’s officiating, with numerous Reddit threads taking aim at Rogan and Goldberg’s commentary. One comment read: “The commentary on that fight is abysmal. They crowned Tibau the winner halfway through the 2nd and just kept hammering that Khabib is promising but in too deep on this one. Clouds the entire fight.”
Khabib’s emotional response, breaking down in tears after the decision, suggested he was aware that the outcome might not favor him. Nonetheless, the judges’ ruling is considered final, and he proceeded to establish a career that left little room for doubt regarding his dominance.
Source link
