Al Iaquinta defeated the number four ranked Kevin Lee in Milwaukee at the final UFC on FOX event Saturday night which will surely put him in the title conversation in the lightweight division. That is, for those not paying attention. Fans should remember Iaquinta has already fought for the title once, on short notice and went the distance against current champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
UFC 223 had Iaquinta face the current champ for the title on less than a weeks’ notice and with the bump up in rankings with his win over Lee, he believes he is more deserving of a rematch against the champ than Conor McGregor. “If Conor is getting a rematch before me, I think that’s some nonsense,” Iaquinta said in his post-fight interview after the win. He cited that McGregor was submitted whereas he was able to survive the Dagestani’s grappling and he had no time to prepare where McGregor, “had all the time in the world.”
Speaking with Michael Bisping afterward, he elaborated on what he said in the cage. He mentioned the short notice versus McGregor’s full fight camp to prepare for Nurmagomedov and how McGregor was still able to “find a way out”, of the fight because McGregor tapped to Nurmagomedov’s choke.
“Me and Khabib could still be fighting right now.” –Al Iaquinta
Iaquinta said in his backstage interview that by the end of 2019, he will be holding the lightweight championship. When a fight in the lightweight division happens, it should be no surprise that the champ was watching and he posted his congratulations to Iaquinta on social media.
Congratulations @ALIAQUINTA
I know how strong you are, that's why I was waiting for your fight. #truetalker— khabib nurmagomedov (@TeamKhabib) December 16, 2018
When the bus incident happened at UFC 223, Nurmagomedov said that “Iaquinta is the real gangster,” and in his congratulations, after the Milwaukee event said he was waiting to see Iaquinta’s fight because he knows how strong he is.
Do you think Iaquinta will get his rematch against Nurmagomedov?
