UFC bantamweight top contender Ricky Simon slammed Umar Nurmagomedov for easily climbing the ranks thanks to his infamous last name.
Umar Nurmagomedov joined the UFC last year and has competed three times, winning all of his matches. His latest outing was against Nate Maness at UFC Vegas 57 back in June. Despite having competed just three times, Umar is now ranked number 13 in the bantamweight division.
The UFC ranking system has never been accurate. Or representative of actual skill. Many of the MMA media representatives and outlets on which it relies don’t exist and haven’t existed for a long time.
This is a well known thing among UFC athletes.
One thing for sure is that popularity plays a big role when it comes to getting in the top 15 spot. For example, Conor McGregor is still ranked number 13 in the lightweight decision despite being absent for over a year. And not having won since his favorable stylistic match up with Cowboy Cerrone.
The same thing might happen to Umar Nurmagomedov, who is known as Khabib Nurmagomedov’s cousin.
Bantamweight ranked number 11 Ricky Simon brought this on his Twitter account. Simon was responding to video creator Will Harris who is close to Umar Nurmagomedov (and the entire Dagestani camp). Harris talked about Umar’s desire to take on top contender for his next outing.
“I had a convo with Umar Nurmagomedov the other day at the UFC PI and you can tell on his face the frustrations of fighters avoiding him. It was the first time I really saw that from a fighter up close. He really wants a top opponent to get closer to the belt.” Harris wrote.
Simon then retweeted and accused Usman of benefiting from his famous last name.
“Yeah yeah, that’s what we all want. He has 3 fights in the UFC and wants to skip the line. He already got ranked without beating a ranked opponent. He will keep getting preferential treatment because of his last name.” Simon wrote.
Yeah yeah, that’s what we all want. He has 3 fights in the UFC and wants to skip the line. He already got ranked without beating a ranked opponent. He will keep getting preferential treatment because of his last name. https://t.co/mIkwqT4bfQ
— Ricky Simón (@RickySimonUFC) November 4, 2022
It’s not wrong to say that Khabib Nurmagomedov made his friends and family quite popular.
You might get far in betting odds simply by being associated to Nurmagomedov.
And that might be the case with Umar.
However, Usman’s skill in the octagon can not be overlooked. The 26-year-old possesses great Sambo skills and is trained by Khabib himself. He is still undefeated in his professional career with an MMA record consisting of 15 wins.