5 most exciting potential match-ups in the UFC Lightweight Division

After decisive submission victories over Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier, Khabib Nurmagomedov sits tall on the lightweight throne in the UFC. Till date, he has yet to face more adversity than he did briefly in his fight against Poirier, with Conor McGregor, Al Iaquinta, Edson Barboza, Rafael Dos Anjos, etc. all posing no threat to his superior grappling skills.

Looking past Nurmagomedov, the Lightweight division is undoubtedly the most exciting, stacked one in all of UFC. It's rightfully called a shark tank or a murderer's row, and no challenge that Khabib faces will be an easy one. The fact that he comes out looking as good as he does is a pure testament to him and his incredible life's worth of grappling skills.

There are quite a few exciting potential match-ups in the UFC right now, with Tony Ferguson, Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor, Justin Gaethje and Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone occupying the first five spots. Paul Felder is on the rise in the division as well, and is one big win away from entering the top 5, and two wins away from potentially getting a title shot.

But no fight will be an easy one, and these are the five fights we feel will be the most exciting in the Lightweight division right now.

#5. Paul Felder vs Dustin Poirier

Paul Felder has openly stated that his next two preferred fights would either be Justin Gaethje or Dustin Poirier. While the Gaethje fight would be a good one, the Poirier one makes sense because The Diamond is just coming off a loss and can re-establish himself as a top 5 contender with a solid win over Felder.

There's a lot at stake for The Irish Dragon as a win over a former Interim Champion will be the biggest of his career and will instantly put him in the picture for a title shot. It's a fight that simply makes sense.

#4. Conor McGregor vs Justin Gaethje

Justin Gaethje and Conor McGregor would be a huge PPV draw

In terms of exciting comeback fights for Conor McGregor, there is perhaps none more so than a fight against Justin Gaethje. As of now, Gaethje has said that he will be sitting it out and waiting for a title shot, admitting that Tony Ferguson deserves it more than him.

He has every right to do so, but obviously, one fight that would guarantee to bring him back would be one against Conor McGregor. It would, after all, be the biggest payday of his career and he has a lot to gain with a win over him. Moreover, they won't be going to the ground so it will end up being an absolute banger!

#3. Tony Ferguson vs Dustin Poirier

Dustin Poirier replied to Tony Ferguson's challenge to Khabib Nurmagomedov, stating that if the champion doesn't want to fight Ferguson, he will. If Tony Ferguson does walk out as champion, then a fight against Poirier would be nothing short of exciting.

While we would love a fight with both of them regardless, Tony Ferguson should not be fighting for anything but the title at this point. It's still an exciting match-up to watch!

#2. Conor McGregor vs Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone

With regards to Conor McGregor, it must be said that all of this is under the assumption that he will return. Given that he's made more money than he knows what to do with and that his motivation clearly isn't the same, one can't blame him for not returning.

But if he does find that hunger to return, there's nobody who can bring the passion back in him the way Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone can. Cerrone is a true fighter and was McGregor's originally-discussed return opponent.

It didn't work out due to issues with management, but now that UFC 244 is a title-less main event (if you discount the BMF title), then they can easily do a Conor-Cowboy PPV main event in late 2019 or early 2020.

#1. Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Tony Ferguson

"How long must we wait?" is the question asked by every UFC fan about Khabib Nurmagomedov vs Tony Ferguson. It's undoubtedly the single most anticipated match-up that UFC can make and as you know, it's one that has been cancelled on 4 different occasions.

This is the fight to make and there's no contender who deserves it more than Ferguson. All injuries discounted, we may finally be headed that direction after over a year and a half.

Edited by Sai Krishna