Nurmagomedov vs Hughes

Who won Nurmagomedov vs Hughes?

Usman Nurmagomedov beat Paul Hughes by majority decision in their 5 round contest during the main event of PFL Road to Dubai Champions Series, on Saturday 25th January 2025 at Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai.

The scorecards were announced as 47-47, 48-46, 48-46 in favor of the winner Usman Nurmagomedov.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 5 rounds in the Lightweight division, which meant the weight limit was 155 pounds (11.1 stone or 70.3 KG).

This contest was for the Bellator Lightweight championship.

Nurmagomedov vs Hughes stats

Usman Nurmagomedov stepped into the octagon with an undefeated record of 18 wins, zero losses and 0 draws, 8 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 6 by submission.

Paul Hughes made his way to the cage with a record of 13 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws, 6 of those wins coming by knock out and 3 by submission.

This was Usman Nurmagomedov's 8th fight in Bellator, having made his debut for the promotion in 2021. Paul Hughes marked his 1st fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2024.

Usman Nurmagomedov's Bellator record stood at 7-0-0, while Paul Hughes' came in at 1-0-0.

The stats suggested Hughes had a slight advantage in power over Nurmagomedov, with a 46% knock out percentage over Nurmagomedov's 44%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Nurmagomedov had a slight advantage over Hughes, with a 33% submission rate over Hughes' 23%.

Usman Nurmagomedov was the younger man by 1 year, at 27 years old.

Nurmagomedov had a height advantage of 2 inches over Hughes.

Nurmagomedov was the more experienced professional fighter, having had 4 more fights, and made his debut in 2017, 1 month later than Hughes, whose first professional fight was in 2017. He had fought 6 more professional rounds, 43 to Hughes' 37.

Nurmagomedov vs Hughes form

Nurmagomedov remained undefeated as a professional, stopping 1 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Benson Henderson at Bellator 292 on 10th March 2023 by submission in the 1st round in their Bellator Lightweight championship fight at SAP Center, San Jose, United States.

Previous to that, he had beaten Patricky Pitbull at Bellator 288 on 18th November 2022 by unanimous decision in their Bellator Lightweight championship fight at Wintrust Arena, Chicago.

Going into that contest, he had defeated Chris Gonzalez at Bellator MMA on 22nd July 2022 by submission in the 1st round at Emerald Queen Casino and Hotel, Tacoma.

Before that, he was victorious against Patrik Pietila at Bellator MMA on 23rd October 2021 by submission in the 1st round at VTB Arena, Moscow, Russia.

He had won against Manny Muro at Bellator 263 on 31st July 2021 by knockout in the 1st round at The Forum, Inglewood, United States.

Hughes had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 2 of them, going the distance twice.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had beaten Fabiano Silva at Cage Warriors 170: Sheehan vs. Konrad on 6th April 2024 by knockout in the 1st round at Simmonscourt Ros, Dublin, United Kingdom.

Previous to that, he had defeated Jan Quaeyhaegens at Cage Warriors 161 – Dublin on 14th October 2023 by knockout in the 1st round at 3Arena, Dublin, Ireland.

Going into that contest, he was victorious against Jordan Vucenic at Cage Warriors 145 on 4th November 2022 by unanimous decision in their 5 round contest at Indigo at the O2, London, United Kingdom.

Before that, he had won against Morgan Charriere at Cage Warriors 128 on 1st October 2021 by majority decision in their 5 round contest at York Hall, London, England.

He had lost to Jordan Vucenic at Cage Warriors 119 on 12th December 2020 by split decision in their 3 round contest at York Hall, London.

Activity check

In of activity leading into the fight, Usman Nurmagomedov had been fighting more than Paul Hughes.

Going to this contest, Usman Nurmagomedov had last fought 2 years, 2 months and 13 days ago, while Paul Hughes' last outing had been 1 year, 1 month and 17 days ago.

Nurmagomedov's last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 9 months and 22 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 9 months and 5 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 9 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.8 rounds on average.

Hughes' last 5 fights had come over a period of 4 years, 5 months and 11 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 10 months and 20 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 15 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 3 rounds on average.

What time did Nurmagomedov vs Hughes start?

The fighters were expected to walk out at around 8:10 PM UTC , which was 3:10 PM EST or 12:10 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 8:10 PM GMT in the UK.

What were the odds on Nurmagomedov vs Hughes?

Usman Nurmagomedov was a 1/5 (-560) favourite going into the contest, while Paul Hughes made his way into the ring at 10/3 (+340) with oddsmakers.