UFC 249 is expected to be headlined by Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson for the UFC Lightweight Championship. With there now being 1,000,000+ members of this subreddit, there's gotta be some new fans out there that don't know the significance of this clash of titans. And seeing as I've been noticing a great few casuals roaming on here in the last couple of days, I think it's time for a detailed explanation about why this fight is so big, and why Dana White is trying so hard to keep this fight alive even in the middle of a global pandemic. This is the casual's guide to the HOW LONG MUST I WAIT fight of the millennium.

Let's start with a brief description of the two fighters in question:

You may know Khabib for being the Russian guy that beat the shit out of Conor McGregor, but he's much more than that. The man is basically invincible as he's never been in real adversity before, the guy doesn't get tired, the guy doesn't bleed, the guy has never lost a round let alone a fight (aside from one round against McGregor). He isn't the best striker but he is a grappler of the absolute highest level and his constant pressure breaks guys usually before the end of the 1st round. His professional record, 28–0, is the highest active undefeated streak in the entire sport. It is the 4th highest undefeated streak of all time, but in terms of level of competition, no one else comes close to Khabib.

The Winning Streak (2012 - present):

• WIN (C) vs. Dustin Poirier (IC) @ UFC 242 via RD 3 Submission - Defended and Unified the UFC Lightweight Championship

• WIN (C) vs. Conor McGregor @ UFC 229 via RD 4 Submission - Defended the UFC Lightweight Championship

• WIN vs. Al Iaquinta @ UFC 223 via UD (50-44, 50-43, 50-43) - Won the vacant UFC Lightweight Championship

• WIN vs. Edson Barboza @ UFC 219 via UD (30-25, 30-25, 30-24)

• WIN vs. Michael Johnson @ UFC 205 via RD 3 Submission

• WIN vs. Darrell Horcher @ UFC on Fox 19 via RD 2 TKO

• WIN vs. Rafael dos Anjos @ UFC on Fox 11 via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

• WIN vs. Pat Healy @ UFC 165 via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

• WIN vs. Abel Trujillo @ UFC 160 via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

• WIN vs. Thiago Tavares @ UFC on FX 7 via RD 1 KO

• WIN vs. Gleison Tibau @ UFC 148 via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

• WIN vs. Kamal Shalorus @ UFC on FX 1 via RD 3 Submission

On the other hand, you have Tony Ferguson, an absolute nut-job in the most polite way I can put it (but also just a pretty weird guy in general). The guy is the opposite of Khabib in that he gets hurt or nearly finished in every fight, yet because of his sheer will and determination still manages to win anyway. Whereas Khabib is the type of guy to grind his opponents out and eventually get a submission win, Tony is one of the gnarliest finishers in the sport. Of his 15 fights in the promotion, only 5 have gone to decision, and he takes a piece of everyone's face with him. Tony is also a high level pressure fighter with a nasty submission game to top it, he can bully you standing up and then once he's got you shooting, your probably getting D'Arced. He's not undefeated, but this isn't boxing and that doesn't matter in this sport. He is also currently riding a 12 fight winning streak, the same company streak Khabib is on right now.

The Winning Streak (2013 - present):

• WIN vs. Donald Cerrone @ UFC 238 via RD 2 TKO

• WIN vs. Anthony Pettis @ UFC 229 via RD 2 TKO

• WIN vs. Kevin Lee @ UFC 216 via RD 3 Submission - Won the Interim UFC Lightweight Championship

• WIN vs. Rafael dos Anjos @ UFC Fight Night 98 via UD (48-47, 48-47, 48-47)

• WIN vs. Lando Vannata @ UFC Fight Night 91 via RD 2 Submission

• WIN vs. Edson Barboza @ The Ultimate Fighter 22 Finale via RD 2 Submission

• WIN vs. Josh Thomson @ UFC Fight Night 71 via UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)

• WIN vs. Gleison Tibau @ UFC 184 via RD 1 Submission

• WIN vs. Abel Trujillo @ UFC 181 via RD 2 Submission

• WIN vs. Danny Castillo @ UFC 177 via SD (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)

• WIN vs. Katsunori Kikuno @ UFC 173 via RD 1 KO

• WIN vs. Mike Rio @ UFC 166 via RD 2 Submission

So there you go, your up to date right? Wrong.

It would be great if this fight wasn't frequently cited as the most cursed bout in combat sports history. This is the FIFTH time this fight has been scheduled, they've been trying to make this happen since 2015 and it has never taken place once. It's important to show the ranks too as you gotta remember these guys weren't always considered the two best Lightweights, and there weren't a lot of people who even gave a shit about this fight up until about the third time it was put together

1. THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER 22 FINALE (2015): Khabib Nurmagomedov (#3) vs. Tony Ferguson (#8), cancelled when Khabib pulled out due to a rib injury. Tony instead faced Edson Barboza earning him two post fight bonuses

2. UFC ON FOX 19 (2016): Khabib Nurmagomedov (#2) vs. Tony Ferguson (#4), cancelled when Tony pulled out due to a lung issue. Khabib instead faced promotional newcomer Darrell Horcher (what a rough start), and he was thoroughly mauled

3. UFC 209 (2017): Khabib Nurmagomedov (#1) vs. Tony Ferguson (#2) for the Interim UFC Lightweight Championship, cancelled when Khabib pulled out due to difficulties cutting weight, a day before the fight. This is the closest we've ever gotten to this fight happening so far. No replacement was made for the card.

4. UFC 223 (2018): Tony Ferguson (IC) vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov (#2) for the Vacant UFC Lightweight Championship, cancelled when Tony TRIPPED ON A WIRE AND INJURED HIS KNEE ON APRIL FOOLS DAY. Then UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway was brought in as a replacement, only the goof commission stopped Holloway from continuing to cut weight and removed him from the bout. They then offered former UFC Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis, now known for folding under the slightest amount of pressure and somehow breaking his hand in every fight he's in, but he didn't make weight. They then offered Paul Felder but the goof commission decided against it because he wasn't ranked at the time (he's #7 now so haha fuck you NYSAC). Finally, they decided on Al Iaquinta, who also missed weight but they said fuck it cause they didn't want to look for anyone else, and despite Joe OHgan telling you that Khabib got E X P O S E D... he cruised a Unanimous Decision victory and Tony was stripped of the Interim title. Also, couple all of this with the McGregor bus attack that same week taking half the fights off the card, this was just an insane week in MMA overall, and our first and so far only GOOFCON 1 event.

Which leads us to now, UFC 249 (2020): Khabib Nurmagomedov (C) vs. Tony Ferguson (#1) for the UFC Lightweight Championship. The two consensus greatest Lightweights on the planet, both on 12 fight winning streaks in the UFC, both among the top 10 Pound for Pound fighters in the world, and it's likely to be cancelled again for the fifth time because of a ONCE IN A CENTURY PANDEMIC that coincidentally started having it's first disclosed cases within a week of the fight's announcement. Isn't that nuts? Now you know how we feel.

Kinda related but finally, If you look at about 40% of this sub's flairs that read "How long must I wait? 2020 edition", it is in reference to this fan-made promotional video that this lovely man re-uploaded to show us just HOW LONG... we've been waiting, give it a watch cause it's phenomenal. (shoutout to the OG creator u/imherewiththewinner, wherever you are)

And don't even get me started on the Gods and sacrifices and all that shit, maybe another time (April 1st maybe? 👀).

So there you have it, if you didn't read the whole thing then how bout u go an fuck off my rundown then u peice of shit u think I need a stupid fuckwitt like u telling me about typing long who the fuck are u take your worthless casual ass and get the fuck out of here