With Usman Nurmagomedov's arrival in the UFC looking more likely, the jockeying for who gets to face him first is already underway. A top fifteen lightweight has publicly stated he believes he'll be the one welcoming Usman to the octagon, while Dan Hooker separately made the case that Ilia Topuria would be too smart to risk a fight with him. Hooker clearly sees himself as the right man for that introduction, and the growing list of names angling for the assignment shows just how much buzz Usman's move is generating.
Sources (13)
We summarise the day's news in our own words. Full credit to the outlets below for the original reporting, click through to read their work.
- Kai Asakura finds new life in UFC following rocky flyweight start (Sherdog)
- Justin Gaethje rules out UFC return in 2026 (The Mac Life)
- Usman Nurmagomedov fires back over Yadong Song incident at UFC Shanghai (Sherdog)
- Top 15 UFC star believes he will be Usman Nurmagomedov’s first opponent in the octagon (Bloody Elbow)
- Zabit Magomedsharipov returns after 7 years, beats UFC featherweight (Sherdog)
- Ex-UFC fighter Sedriques Dumas takes down costumed fan in arena brawl (Sherdog)
- Yuki Yoza And Nabil Anane Set For Bantamweight Kickboxing Collision At ONE SAMURAI 4 (ONE Championship)
- Dan Hooker doubts Ilia Topuria would risk Usman Nurmagomedov fight (Sherdog)
- Zabit Magomedsharipov calls Yadong Song’s Umar Nurmagomedov KO a ‘lucky punch’ (Sherdog)
- Song Yadong calls knocking out Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC Shanghai ‘the best moment of my life’ (MMA Fighting)
- Yadong Song's team predicted exact uppercut KO of Umar Nurmagomedov (Sherdog)
- Sean O’Malley Reacts To Song Yadong’s UFC Shanghai KO With Title-Race Reminder (MiddleEasy)
- Usman Nurmagomedov's former rival returns for PFL Chicago (Sherdog)
Split from that day's roundup, so the sources listed are the full set behind the whole edition rather than this story alone.
This story ran in the August 31, 2026 edition of the daily show.