MMA ODDS AND ENDS FOR FRIDAY – NURMAGOMEDOV INJURED AGAIN

In possibly the least surprising news of the year, top UFC lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov is injured. According to reports, Nurmagomedov was forced to pull out of his upcoming Ultimate Fighter 22 Finale co-headlining bout against Tony Ferguson because of a rib injury. There are discussions of Edson Barboza stepping in to replace him, but as of now, nothing is set in stone. This makes it the third right fight Nurmagomedov hasn’t been able to see completion. It started with a planned UFC 178 battle against Donald Cerrone which”The Eagle” was pressured from after a knee injury. When the bout was rescheduled for UFC 187 he reaggravated the exact same knee and he’s out of the December fight. Nurmagomedov hasn’t fought in April of 2014 because a unanimous decision victory over Lightweight Champion Rafael Dos Anjos. Depending on how long it takes for him to recuperate from this rib blow off, he could be on over a two-year break before he sees the Octagon . Ross Pearson vs. Francisco Trinaldo — UFC Fight Night 81 While one UFC bout was cancelled, another was declared as recent winners Ross Pearson and Francisco Trinaldo are supposed to throw down in Boston this upcoming January. Pearson was victorious in his last bout over Paul Felder via unanimous conclusion despite being a heavy underdog. Trinaldo did the same thing, winning as a dog that is huge this past August through initial round TKO over Chad Laprise. This is a fairly evenly matched fight, however, Trinaldo has more momentum. The Brazilian has won four straight bouts and is coming from the best success of his career while Pearson has been not able to string any wins together in his last eight fights. While Pearson has more name recognition, it wouldn’t surprise me to view Trinaldo open because the slight betting popular this time around due to his recent string of success.

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