Usman, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Alfie Davis Preview PFL Bout

By
Gabriel Gonzalez
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Open Workouts during PFL Dubai Global 1 at Global Village in Dubai, UAE, Wednesday February 4, 2026. (Jose Peñuela / PFL)

PFL lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov, Alfie Davis, and Khabib Nurmagomedov preview the PFL main event this Saturday.

This Saturday, the PFL will return to action for the first time in 2026 as their lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov will be taking on Alfie Davis. This will be the third straight time that Nurmagomedov will be fighting in Dubai after headlining two pivotal events against Paul Hughes.

While Nurmagomedov has downplayed it, there is no doubt that this fight is slightly more personal for him and his team. Davis won the 2025 World Tournament and did so by besting the defending champion and fellow member of the Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov school: Gadzhi Rabadanov.  While Nurmagomedov has downplayed how much extra incentive he feels to avenge his teammate, there’s no question the two have a natural friction going into the fight. Being one of the highest profile fighters from the team bearing his surname, Nurmagomedov expressed at media day that it’s not personal with Davis but that he does know the pressure that comes with representing his team and carrying on the reputation of dominance expected of them:

“About Alfie Davis, I don’t think nothing. He’s just somebody in my way, and I have to finish him. That’s it. I’m tired of fighting all five rounds. For this fight I have prepared something special…Our legacy is legacy for Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov school. Always when I go into the cage, I know I have to prove that legacy. We’re here just to show people we’re the best in the world.”

It’s not lost on anyone that this is an important stretch for the team. Usman’s elder brother Umar Nurmagomedov is coming off a key victory two weeks ago in the UFC against Deiveson Figueiredo to put himself back in serious title contention. Then of course, their famed elder cousin Khabib Nurmagomedov looks to continue his excellent record as coach. In speaking about one of the youngest members of the contingent when he started out, Nurmagomedov said:

“Alfie Davis and Usman. They don’t like each other, and this is good. They both have unpredictable fight style. The way I see it, Usman is better than him. But he has good movement, he is a dangerous fighter for us…ou know Alfie and Usman have unpredictable fight style. They move a lot, have good kicks, spinning kicks. But I think Usman is one class above, Usman is better. We are preparing for a long night. We don’t prepare for one round finish, we prepare for five round fight, but if a finish comes, Usman is going to finish him.”

Going into the fight, there’s no doubt that the team is enjoying a great moment.  As stated, Usman’s older brother is coming off a huge win and their longtime friend and teammate Islam Makhachev is at the top of the sport after winning a title in a second weight class.  But a major talking point from the team by both Khabib Nurmagomedov and the longtime American Kickboxing Academy head coach Javier Mendez is that Usman Nurmagomedov may be the one to be remembered as the best fighter ever to come from the team.  Per Khabib:

“Honestly, I learnt a lot about Usman because of his last two fights. In first fight it showed a couple weaknesses of Usman. And second fight, he fixed it. He improved mentally, he improved physically. He improved his skills, and I learned a lot about him…Our goal is to make him best fighter pound for fighter, and best to ever do this. Me and Coach Jav, and when my father was alive, he was working very hard and he believed he could be best to ever do this. And now me and Coach Jav work morning and night not to make him not just champion who can defend title six times, our goal is to make him best fighter pound for pound and best to do this of all time. He has very big potential for this.”

On the other side of the cage, Alfie Davis is intent on spoiling the party. He carries the advantage that he’s faced the team and feels he carries the advantage of great perspective after watching Nurmagomedov’s past two fights:

“People say he’s a great wrestler, I do think he has good wrestling, but his pedigree was not actually wrestling. He started wrestling in his later teens, he’s not like the other Dagestanis. And when you look at him, he doesn’t have a great driving double legs, he’s got more cheeky trips. And even on the floor he’s not good at holding, Paul [Hughes] managed to get up every single time. He’s more of a back taker and stall on the back. What Usman does well is he steals exchanges very well. This is why he’s not got a huge amount of KOs, he doesn’t go for the kill, he wins on taking the exchanges in the fight and stealing rounds. If you were to put him in a wrestling match with good wrestlers, I don’t think he’d fare well. I think he’s a decent grappler, but I think there are ways to exploit what he does.”

Finally, Davis says that a personal goal would be to prove his skills to the point that he coerces the Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov School’s famed leader out of retirement:

“It’s a shame, I really like Khabib. I really respect him. But after I beat Usman, he’s the final boss of the team, I’ve got to fight him. He’s got to come out of retirement, you know what I mean?”

Lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov takes on Alfie Davis in the main event of PFL: Road to Dubai on February 7, 2026 in Dubai, UAE.

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