Khabib Nurmagomedov comes up short against Zlatan Ibrahimovic in arm wrestling challenge

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Khabib Nurmagomedov found himself in a surprisingly even contest during an arm wrestling match against football legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Standing at 6’5″, Ibrahimovic retired from playing two years ago and has since moved into an advisory role with AC Milan, the last club he played for. He recently met up with former UFC champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, and after taking some photos together, they decided to test their strength in a friendly arm-wrestling match.

The former lightweight champion didn’t have it easy against the much bigger Ibrahimovic, who’s been a fan of fighting for quite some time. Paul Pogba, who recently made his return to football after serving a suspension, was there to referee the contest.

Khabib Nurmagomedov goes up against Zlatan Ibrahimovic in an arm wrestling match

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Zlatan Ibrahimovic faced off in an arm wrestling match that caught plenty of attention, even though it ended without a clear winner. The pair appeared to be evenly matched, with the session ending in a draw after neither could gain the upper hand.

The UFC Hall of Famer’s strength had famously overwhelmed top fighters like Conor McGregor, Justin Gaethje, and Dustin Poirier during his career. But this time, even though they weren’t going full force, he found it tough to get the better of the Swede.

During their arm wrestle, Nurmagomedov asked Ibrahimovic what he was feeling. “I feel spirit,” the striker replied. Both laughed and called it a day without either side being able to move the other’s arm.

Fan reactions to Khabib vs Zlatan arm wrestling clip

The clip quickly made the rounds online, with many fans joking that neither Khabib nor Zlatan really wanted to go all out and risk a loss. “Of course neither wanted to lose hence why they didn’t do it,” one fan posted. “But they got the reaction.”

Another viewer wrote: “That’s that alpha energy clash two different worlds same grind… You can feel it through the screen fam.” While one praised “Zlatan’s ability to turn everything into aura farming.”