Nick Newell Nick Newell, 27, was born without a left forearm or hand. The Springfield, Mass product has had difficulty finding opponents during his career--firstly because of his handicap, secondly because he is really fucking good at fighting. Now 11-0, Newell is chasing his second championship in MMA. Newell's ultimate goal is to fight in the UFC and at this rate it will be hard to deny him the opportunity. Conor McGregor Fans in the UK had been calling on the UFC to sign gregarious Dubliner Conor McGregor since 2011. McGregor lived up to the hype, knocking out Marcus Brimage in about a minute in Sweden in April in his UFC debut. The 25-year old is a well rounded martial artist with a background in kickboxing and a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. McGregor's currently sidelined with a blown ACL that will keep him on the shelf until mid-2014 or later. Khabib Nurmagomedov Undefeated 25-year old Dagastani Khabib Nurmagomedov leads a new crop of Russian fighters from the shores of the Caspian Sea. In his fight with Abel Trujillo, Nurmagomedov set a new record for take-downs with 21 over three rounds. The Eagle's combination of wrestling, judo, and sambo make him a nightmare match-up for many of the UFC's lightweights. Nurmagomedov is expected to face Gilbert Melendez in a title eliminator at UFC 170. Edit: Nurmagomedov won't be fighting Melendez, per the latest. Brandon Thatch 28-year old Brandon Thatch out of Denver, Colorado, is one of the best welterweight prospects to come along since Rory MacDonald and Erick Silva. A late bloomer, Thatch didn't begin training karate until age 16, and has only been fighting professionally since 2008. Thatch finished both of his UFC fights this year with knees to the body. With the likes of "Ace" Lim, the welterweight division is looking pretty good for 2014 even without GSP.
I don't know if McGregor is good enough to be a champion (Nurmagomedov might be) but he's definitely the biggest star among those guys.
