Opponent named for Umar Nurmagomedov's 'Fight Island' UFC debut

Russian UFC bantamweight Umar Nurmagomedov - cousin of lightweight champion Khabib - will face Britain's Nathaniel Wood when the Dagestani prospect makes his debut in the promotion on 'Fight Island' in Abu Dhabi on July 25.

The undefeated Nurmagomedov, who captured the GFC bantamweight title before being signed by the UFC earlier this year, was initially due to make his octagon bow on the card headlined by Khabib against Tony Ferguson in New York in April, before the Covid-19 pandemic put paid to the event. 

As with his cousin, the younger Nurmagomedov, 24, has been confined to his Dagestani homeland in recent months due to quarantine measures, but will now finally make his octagon bow as part of the UFC's series of cards in July on Yas Island in the UAE capital. 

Multiple reports have stated that the bout will be against Britain's Nathaniel Wood, who owns a 16-4 pro record and stands 3-1 in the UFC.

The 26-year-old known as 'The Prospect' was last in action in February, losing to John Dodson via third-round TKO - which snapped a run of eight straight victories and was his first UFC defeat in four fights with the promotion.

Umar Nurmagomedov - who is 12-0 in professional MMA - has featured in RT Sport's docu-series 'Land of Warriors', which focuses on the MMA hotbed of Dagestan and the world-class fighters that emanate from the area.