Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Urijah Faber set for RAF Abu Dhabi

Umar Nurmagomedov is pivoting to wrestling competition after his shocking knockout loss to Song Yadong. The former UFC bantamweight challenger has signed with Real American Freestyle and will make his promotional debut at RAF Abu Dhabi on November 14 at Etihad Arena, facing Urijah Faber.

Nurmagomedov, 30, is making a notable career shift following his August stoppage loss in Shanghai. Prior to that setback, he had strung together consecutive decision wins over Mario Bautista and Deiveson Figueiredo to recover from a decision loss to then-champion Merab Dvalishvili in January 2025.

Faber, the renowned "California Kid" and former UFC champion, will be competing in his third RAF appearance. He is still searching for his first victory in the promotion, having suffered technical fall losses to Henry Cejudo at RAF 6 in February and to Arman Tsarukyan two months later at RAF 8.

The RAF Abu Dhabi card will be headlined by a cruiserweight crossover title bout featuring Colby Covington defending against former UFC middleweight champion Khamzat Chimaev.