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Dana White: Khabib Nurmagomedov asked to fight Michael Johnson at UFC 205

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:12 p.m. ET

Damon Martin

Khabib Nurmagomedov isn't getting the title shot he was promised, but the No. 1-ranked lightweight contender isn't going to sit around and complain about.

Nurmagomedov was offered a fight against 155-pound champion Eddie Alvarez but the carrot dangled out in front of him was pulled away when the UFC opted to give Conor McGregor the shot instead.

As angry as he was that he was essentially a pawn in the chess game to make Alvarez vs. McGregor happen, Nurmagomedov wasted no time asking the UFC for a different fight instead.

"I'm also working on — Khabib (Nurmagomedov) was also supposed to get a title fight at 155-pounds. Khabib called and said 'I get it, Conor's getting this fight, put me on New York, too' so he wants to fight Michael Johnson," UFC president Dana White revealed on ESPN on Tuesday.

Johnson is fresh off a first-round knockout over Dustin Poirier at UFC Fight Night in Hidalgo, Texas less than two weeks ago and he immediately asked for Nurmagomedov after the fight was finished.

Both fighters seem on board for the matchup although nothing has been finalized just yet to make the bout official.

If Nurmagomedov vs. Johnson is added, UFC 205 could go down as the most stacked show in promotion history with three title fights at the top as well as a laundry list of top-10 fighters decorating the undercard.

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