Life-changing win, quick KO & controversial loss – Hughes’ biggest bouts

In their highly anticipated rematch in Dubai on Friday, Paul Hughes faces PFL lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov in a potentially career-defining night.

In the co-main event of the PFL Champions Series: Road to Dubai, the rivals will compete for the PFL lightweight world title.

The lightweight’s professional record, which includes 14 wins and two losses, would gain even more if they won on Friday to become an MMA star.

Hughes started out in the professional ranks in 2017 before really beginning to gain popularity with the Cage Warriors.

After claiming the Cage Warriors interim featherweight title with a majority decision over Morgan Charriere in London in October 2021, his big break came in his ninth professional fight.

The second round was a thrilling battle between Charriere and Hughes, before the momentum eventually turned to Hughes.

In the later rounds, the Lavey resident was in charge, coming close to defeating his French foe, and landing a number of eye-catching strikes.

In November 2022, Hughes and Jordan Vecenic squared off in an intriguing rematch following their victory over Charriere.

Conor McGregor previously won the belt before the Dubliner forged for fame as a two-weight champion, so Hughes was aware of the value of a win in advancing his career.

The Derry native’s only other major accomplishment was his own one-time career defeat against Vucenic in 2020, which only boosted his desire for victory.

Hughes and his English opponent lost in a contentious split decision, and both fighters’ recovery was delayed by their injuries.

Given that it would pit the champion against the interim champion, the fight, which would take place over five rounds this time, was billed as the biggest in Cage Warriors history when it was made public.

Lavey man Hughes put on a strong performance to earn the win, deservedly, with a unanimous decision.

Vucenic fell to his feet in the second round, allowing Hughes to take control of the match for the majority of the game.

After receiving a body shot and a head injury, Hughes almost stopped Vucenic at the end of the third round.

In the fourth round, Hughes returned to where he left off, dropping Vucenic with a series of punches, and going into the fifth saw the contest come out on top.

In October of this year, it was announced that Hughes would fight AJ McKee in Dubai in his second fight since signing for PFL.

In the lead-up to the fight, which was the American representing the biggest fight of his career at the time, Hughes had described the encounter with McKee as “a life-changing opportunity.”

Prior to meeting Hughes, McKee, a former Bellator featherweight champion, had won 22 of his 23 professional fights. He was an expert and experienced player.

In terms of opponent skill and the ability to win, Hughes was undoubtedly the underdog, and it was obvious that he had taken a step up from Cage Warriors and won with a split decision victory.

In the first round, Hughes impressed with his dangerous striking, which included catching McKee with a right hook.

In the final five minutes, Hughes would regain control, catching McKee up against the cage and unleashing a number of strikes, including an eye-catching uppercut, while McKee fought back in the second round.

Unsurprisingly, this list includes Hughes and Nurmagomedov’s original fight for the then-Bellaby lightweight title in January, which is regarded as one of the 2025 fights.

Even though he gave a strong performance, Hughes was a huge underdog in the first round, and Nurmagomedov won with a thrilling majority decision.

In the second round, Hughes successfully defended Nurmagomedov’s numerous takedown attempts.

Nurmagomedov finished the third round well with a takedown, but momentum changed in the fourth round as he continued to dominate with several kicks to Hughes’ thigh.

After Hughes fled, the two fighters exchanged blows until the fight came to an abrupt halt, with both claiming to be confident in their own success.

After the judges scored the fight 47-47 48-46 48-46 in his favor, Nurmagomedov kept the belt and extended his unbeaten streak to 19 fights.

He acknowledged following the fight that he had “underestimated” Hughes and that he could not have prevented the latter in their second fight on Friday.

In his most recent fight from May in Belfast, Hughes recovered from that agonizing defeat to Nurmagomedov with an incredible 42-second knockout victory over Bruno Miranda.

For the first time since 2019, Hughes gave an electric performance that matched the atmosphere at SSE Arena.

Hughes seized on a laziness from Brazilian Miranda to capitalize on it and deliver his decisive blow in front of home crowd to stake his claim to a rematch against Nurmagomedov.

The referee intervened as Miranda fell and Hughes was unloaded, and a hushed Hughes soaked up the cheers from the raucous Belfast crowd.

Your day is approaching, Hughes said in the aftermath, “Usman Nurmagomedov, you can run and you can try to delay this rematch as long as you want.”