Al Iaquinta vs Khabib

Do we still remember this fight? Al Iaquinta got an insane opportunity as the 11th ranked fighter.

What other fighters would you like to see get a chance like this?

Nate diaz and jorge masvidal :upside_down_face:

Iaquinta was underrated

At the time he had a five fight winstreak which included wins over Kevin Lee, Sanchez, Lauzon and Masdival.

He was a better LW than 1-3 Conrat that’s for sure.

People keep forgetting how exactly that opportunity came about:

UFC 223

  • Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov was originally expected to headline this event
  • Ferguson pulled out of the fight on April 1 due to a knee injury.
  • He was replaced by then UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway.
  • On weigh-in day, the main event suffered another set back as Holloway was deemed medically unfit to compete and then removed from the event.
  • The UFC targeted former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis as his replacement
  • Pettis weighed in at 155.2 pounds in his first attempt, and despite being given extra time to make the championship weight limit of 155 pounds, he did not weigh in again
  • Paul Felder also offered to step in to face Nurmagomedov as he weighed in at 155, but the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) declined it due to Felder being unranked in the UFC official ranking
  • The UFC booked Felder’s opponent Al Iaquinta instead
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Good info!!

I remember that he took the “GOAT” to a decision on short notice.

Dude did better than Conor Dustin and Justin. But then his career spiraled outta control after that Loss

Iaquinta was not even that active too when he was given his Title Shot. He had like 1 fight in 3 years before fighting Khabib, and it was against… Diego Sanchez. He was not fighting because of the money inside the cage vs out.

He was literally inactive in the cage for those years while being an active Licensed Realtor.