Seated in the centre of a raised dais at a press conference in Miami, Florida, Khabib Nurmagomedov held court with media members ahead of his Eagle Fighting Championship (Eagle FC) promotion’s highly-anticipated debut in the United States.
According to Nurmagomedov, Eagle FC 44—which took place on Jan. 28, 2022 and featured a heavyweight bout between Russia’s Sergei Kharitonov and kickboxer Tyrone Spong in the main event—marked the organization’s emergence as a threat to leading entities such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
“Big organizations like the UFC, Bellator, they have to be careful with their fighters because Eagle FC is here,” Khabib said at the time.