UFC champ Khabib Nurmagomedov ‘to host extreme reality TV show in Kazakhstan’

UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov will swap the octagon for the less familiar surroundings of a medieval Kazakh village to present an extreme reality TV show titled “The Nomads,” according to reports.

Filming of the Kazakhstan-based show is scheduled for May, with the first episode planned to be aired in February 2020.

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According to reports in the local media, Nurmagomedov will head to Sandyktau region, 340km to the northwest of the capital Astana, to co-host the show along with Kazakh colleagues. It will be the second season of “The Nomads” project after it made its TV debut last summer. Fourteen episodes of the tough reality competition will be broadcast in 118 countries, with a focus being placed on Kazakh national traditions and customs.

Two teams made up of world famous athletes and Olympic champions will be competing for the main prize, successively passing through various challenges which will not only demand physical strength, but also intellectual skills.

“We were re-constructing old fortresses and dwellings for the show, to reproduce the medieval surroundings with the help of various decorations,” said Asylbek Ismagambetov, the head of the Sandyktau region in Kazakhstan.

“Local people also want to take part in filming the show as background artists.”

Nurmagomedov is a common visitor to Kazakhstan, with his most recent stay coming last weekend, when he went to an orphanage in the city of Karaganda. He spent time there at the invitation of one of his supporters, who reached out to him during the MMA star’s #LettertoKhabib initiative, in which he vowed to grant the wishes of 10 fans who wrote to him via social media.  

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On Tuesday, UFC lightweight king was slapped with a nine-month suspension and a $500,000 fine for inciting the post-fight brawl which marred his victory over Irish megastar Conor McGregor in October.

UFC boss Dana White said that the Nevada State Athletic Commission, which issued the punishment, had been "a little harsh" on Nurmagomedov.