Donald Cerrone On Nurmagomedov: Stylistically, He’ll Be A Terrible Fight

With an impressive seven-fight win streak intact, No. 3-ranked UFC lightweight Donald Cerrone doesn’t have too many contenders left to face before he finally gets his first UFC title shot.

The man standing in his way promises to be an extremely difficult test for “Cowboy,” however, as it’s widely thought that Cerrone will take on undefeated No. 2-ranked Khabib Nurmagomedov when “The Eagle” returns from the knee surgery that forced him out the two fighters’ originally scheduled showdown at last September’s UFC 178.

The bout isn’t official as of yet, but Nurmagomedov believes it to be the first step on his three-part plan to dominate the stacked UFC lightweight division by the end of 2015. If Nurmagomedov does get past Cerrone, it will most likely be on the heels of his top-level wrestling and Sambo background, something which Cerrone is well aware of.

Speaking in a recent interview with MMA Junkie’s John Morgan, “Cowboy” said that he isn’t exactly excited for the match-up of styles that “The Eagle” presents, but he knows he’s the only opponent left:

“This is the guy – that’s it. He’s the only one left before getting the belt. Stylistically, he’s going to be a terrible fight, man. I’m a striker, he’s a wrestler. So I’ve gotta get my wrestling on. I like fighting. I don’t give a sh-t.”

Well known as one of the most active and exciting fighters in MMA, it’s no surprise to hear Cerrone voice his concerns with Nurmagomedov’s grinding style. He’s intent on fulfilling the expectations of his many fans, and he doesn’t necessarily believe that this fight will live up to them:

“I want to fight,” he said. “Not only fight on a date, but actually go in there and throw down. So, for someone that wants to just come and wrestle me and not make it an entertaining fight, I hate that on my side because I don’t give the fans what they want to see. I want to throw down.”

It’s definitely improbable that Nurmagomedov throws caution to the wind and abandons his go-to skillset to engage “Cowboy” on the feet, so that’s why Cerrone is going to train his wrestling more than anything else:

“I’ll definitely gauge my training toward wrestling,” Cerrone said. “But you never know what he’s going to do. He may try – but I doubt it. His striking’s not top level. He’s probably just going to try to wrestle the sh-t out of me.”

It’d be wholly surprising to see Nurmagomedov do anything else, so Cerrone will just have to adapt to the only real challenge remaining on his quest towards a title shot.

If he gets by the dominant “Eagle,” then 2015 could be the year that “Cowboy” rides to the top.

Photo Credit: Rafael Suanes-US PRESSWIRE