Vadim Nemkov Added to Road to Dubai Champions Series, Nathan Kelly Gets New Opponent

Vadim Nemkov vs. Tim Johnson Added to Road to Dubai Champions Series

Set to kick off the PFL’s 2025 schedule, Road to Dubai Champions Series will go down at Dubai’s Coca-Cola Arena and features a highly-anticipated main event between undefeated Bellator Lightweight Champion Usman Nurmagomedov and Paul Hughes.

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An originally-planned heavyweight co-main event between former Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion Nemkov and 2022 PFL Heavyweight Champion Ante Delija was scrapped from the card when Delija was forced to withdraw, and a replacement trilogy bout between Nemkov and Corey Anderson also unfortunately fell through shortly after it was announced.

It looked as if Nemkov wouldn't be competing in Dubai with less than a month to go until the event, but now the PFL and Bellator have announced that the 32-year-old will meet heavyweight veteran Tim Johnson on January 25.

A veteran of the UFC and Bellator, Johnson debuted under the PFL banner with a first-round finish against Danilo Marques but was stopped in the first round of a playoff matchup with eventual 2024 PFL Heavyweight Champion Denis Goltsov in November.

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Undefeated featherweight Khasan Magomedsharipov has also apparently withdrawn from the card, and now Nathan Kelly will look to extend his current 11-fight win streak against another dangerous Dagestani fighter in Akhmed Magomedov.

Fan anticipation for Road to Dubai Champions Series has been growing steadily in the last week after Khabib Nurmagomedov made headlines for his comments about the quality of Irish MMA compared to Dagestan, and on January 25 his cousin Usman will attempt to back up those claims when he meets Hughes in the night’s headlining fight.

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