'He's never going to beat me!' - Usman Nurmagomedov ready to retain belt against Paul Hughes

Usman Nurmagomedov has vowed to stamp out his mistakes in his rematch with Paul Hughes at the PFL Champions Series, as he seeks a second win over his rival.

The star won a majority decision in January this year, but returns to Dubai bent on a comprehensive victory after the pair went the distance the first time around.

Now, Nurmagomedov has revealed he believes he can secure the stoppage - and in an interview with DAZN News, disagreed with suggestions he was humbled in their first bout.

What do you think of Paul Hughes?

Nothing.

Any prediction for that fight? Can you finish him before the five rounds?

I think yes. This time, I think yes. This time, I will try. Last time, I made some mistakes, but this time, I know what he can do.

I know where his weakness is. And this time, it's going to be different.

There was a lot of tension between you before the fight, but a lot of respect after. Paul Hughes says that he humbled you. What happened?

No, I don't think so. He humbled himself. He lost all five rounds. There is nothing, nowhere he beat me.

What did you think of the fight in general? Your performance, his performance?

He was close. He was just staying close, showing people he can do something, but nothing else. This is not enough to win a fight.

He was against the champion, this is not enough. If you want to be champion, you should show the people a very big performance.

You have to beat this guy like crazy. I don't know. You have to do something to win, but not talking.

He told us that he planned to put more pressure on you from the start and that he would damage you. What did you plan to do?

People, they can hurt me, they can punch me. But he's never going to beat me. This is sport, this is a hard sport.

Of course, maybe he can hurt me. I can hurt him too. But for the win, he's never going to beat me.

Why are you so confident?

Because in my mind, he can never beat me. He's never going to beat me. I was in deep waters with him. I was in the worst shape of my career, he couldn't beat me.

Now, this time, I will be ready for five or even ten rounds. We'll see what's going to happen.

Who was the strongest opponent that you ever faced?

Alexandr Shabliy. He was the best. Because he was more dangerous, more powerful, more speedy, and I couldn't take him down, hold him.

In my mind, I was ready to die in this fight. Even in the fight, I told him in the fifth round.

You never defended twice against the same foe , not even against Brent Primus. Why did you give that chance to Paul to fight you again?

Because after my last fight, it was after my fight, we waited eight months, and I needed a fight. They told me, Paul Hughes, blah, blah, blah, something like that.

I don't care against who. Just give me a fight. I want to fight. I beat him one time. I'm going to beat him twice. Why not?

He won in Belfast in a matter of seconds against Bruno Miranda. Did that impress you?

Against who? 

Bruno Miranda. Paul knocked him out in forty-two seconds in Belfast.

Who is this guy? Who knew him? In Dagestan, we have the same guys, a lot.

If you won that fight, who is next?

I want to fight with the champ, Alfie Davis

What did you think of his performance against Gadzhi Rabadanov? Is it an upset or not for you?

No, after the fight, we're not talking. Alfie won, Gadzhi lost. This is sport. Nothing else. He's the champ. We're going to fight with him. His performance is not good.

It's not bad. He's not bad. But he has a problem and he knows what his problem is. Alfie, he has a very big problem on the ground.

If I meet him, I'm going to roll him all five rounds on the ground. I'm not going to fight with him in the strike.

What is your prediction for Ilia Topuria against Islam Makhachev?

Topuria is a short and small guy. Against Islam, I don't know how he's going to fight. If [Bryce] Mitchell can take down Topuria, of course, Islam is going to take him down too.

But different, we have only one thing different. Islam is not Mitchell. If Islam can take you down, he's going to take your soul. This is the big difference.