Javier Mendez thinks Merab Dvalishvili’s antics swayed the judges in his favor against Umar Nurmagomedov.
[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag]’s antics swayed the judges in his favor against [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag].
After winning the first two rounds on two of the three judges’ scorecards, Nurmagomedov was outlasted in a unanimous decision loss to bantamweight champion Dvalishvili (19-4 MMA, 12-2 UFC) in the UFC 311 co-main event in January.
Although Nurmagomedov (18-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) broke his hand in Round 1 of the fight, his head coach Mendez points to a different reason why he lost.
“I just said to him, ‘You know what, Umar? I felt, in my opinion, I felt you won three out of the five rounds,” Mendez said on his “Javier & Mo podcast.”
“Maybe I’m being biased, but I felt in the fifth round, the reason why you didn’t win is because he showboated his way to winning that. He acted like the victor while you were tired. That’s why I feel he basically took it from you because you let him. But I felt you won.’
“Because when you look at damage and this and that, but when it comes to presence, he definitely got that. The actual damage that he did was nothing compared to what Umar did. He did more. But again, (Dvalishvili) did show that, ‘I’m the winner, I’m the winner,’ and Umar couldn’t stop him from showing that. I can see how the judges would get swayed on that.”
Nurmagomedov is yet to be booked for another fight. Meanwhile, Dvalishvili will run things back with Sean O’Malley in the UFC 316 main event June 7 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.
Javier Mendez is not opposed to Justin Gaethje getting the next UFC lightweight title shot.
[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag] is not opposed to [autotag]Justin Gaethje[/autotag] getting the next UFC lightweight title shot.
Gaethje (26-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) called for a title shot after defeating Rafael Fiziev by unanimous decision in this past Saturday’s UFC 313 co-main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Considering that UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) is yet to fight Gaethje, Mendez doesn’t see why not. Ranked ahead of Gaethje are Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan, both whom Makhachev already beat.
“Fantastic. Then it’s Justin Gaethje. We’ll focus on Justin Gaethje,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “That would be, ideally for us, the perfect matchup based on where his standing is and what he’s done. He’s a big, known guy and Islam hasn’t fought him, So he’s perfect.”
The other option for Makhachev is Ilia Topuria, who vacated his featherweight title for a move up to 155 pounds. Makhachev previously said he wasn’t interested in taking on another 145-pounder in Topuria, but Mendez says the champion will fight whoever the UFC offers,
“It’s not important to me,” Mendez said on who Makhachev fights next. “Let’s focus on whoever the UFC decides because I’m not even going to talk about something that’s not even there. What is there, is what Dana (White) talked about. So me, I’d rather focus on what Dana said.”
Tsarukyan pulled out of his title fight against Makhachev (27-1 MMA, 16-1 UFC) just one day before UFC 311 due to a back injury. Makhachev faced Renato Moicano instead, submitting him in Round 1 this past Saturday at Intuit Dome.
[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag] hopes that’s not the case.
“I feel bad for him because no fighter should have to go through what that poor guy did,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “He trained so hard for this, earned the right to fight for the title, deserving the right to fight for the title, and only be out because of an injury, not because of anything else.
“I feel bad for him because it just reminded me of what happened to Khabib (Nurmagomedov). Same thing as him, so I wish him a speedy recovery, and I hope he doesn’t have to take another fight before he gets a title shot. I hope the UFC gives him that opportunity.”
If Tsarukyan isn’t next, Mendez wants a fresh challenge for Makhachev.
“Justin Gaethje because he hasn’t fought him,” Mendez said.
Gaethje will first have to get through Dan Hooker on March 8 in the UFC 313 co-main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Also waiting in the wings is Charles Oliveira, whom Makhachev submitted in their vacant lightweight title fight at UFC 280.
Mendez was surprised to see Nurmagomedov (18-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) resort to grappling after having success on the feet in the first two rounds. That’s because he had no idea Nurmagomedov broke his hand early on.
“If he had told me he broke his hand, I would have changed the game plan,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “Khabib and I would have changed the game plan completely around because Khabib is a great corner. He’s one of the great ones that I’ve encountered cornering with. So, we could have changed the game plan, but we weren’t told. Umar didn’t tell us. That just shows you the kind of warrior he is. We would have changed the plan had he told us that. Why would we do what we did, having him throw that broken hand, if we knew he broke his hand? That would be stupid.
“I would have had him kick more. Keep the distance, keep him at a distance, keep kicking because he’s a great kicker. But, no, the game plan was to stay inside and pick him apart, and I was wondering what the hell? And he kept putting his head down. He kept putting his head down more than often, and I’m like, ‘What the hell?’ I go, ‘OK, Merab must be that much tougher.’ And yeah, he is that tough. But I didn’t know that Umar broke his hand. He didn’t tell us.”
Dvalishvili’s head coach, John Wood, also revealed that his fighter was dealing with adversity going into the fight. Dvalishvili (19-4 MMA, 12-2 UFC) suffered multiple gashes to his right leg after colliding with a set of stairs, which required 27 stitches to repair. Wood said Dvalishvili also pinched a nerve in his back in the lead-up to the fight.
Many folks might disagree with Javier Mendez’s pick for UFC champion Islam Makhachev’s toughest fight.
Many people might disagree with [autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag]’s pick for UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag]’s toughest fight.
Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) has been dominant for the most part, but a few fighters have given him competitive fights during his career. Outside of his knockout loss to Adriano Martins in 2015, Makhachev has never lost.
Arman Tsarukyan impressed in his short-notice UFC debut against Makhachev in April 2019, and Alexander Volkanovski pushed Makhachev to the brink in their title fight at UFC 284.
“Dustin was the biggest challenge,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “Dustin brought it, man. That was a Dustin I’d never seen before. That was an unbelievable Dustin so, for me, it’s Dustin. I don’t know about Arman because it hasn’t happened yet. But right at this particular juncture, it’s Dustin. Dustin was the biggest challenge.”
Makhachev rematches Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) on Saturday in the UFC 311 main event from Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif. The fight streams on ESPN+ pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.
Mendez’s thoughts on Khabib coaching at UFC 311
Mendez and Khabib Nurmagomedov will be cornering three fighters on the night: Tagir Ulanbekov, who opens up the card against Clayton Carpenter; Umar Nurmagomedov, who challenges bantamweight champ Merab Dvalishvili in the co-main event; and Makhachev in the main event.
“In the past, I’ve tried to calm Khabib down, but it doesn’t work,” Mendez said. “I’m not going to try at all. I’m just going to be me. I’m going to take care of myself and make sure I’m there to give my fighters the advice they need. I’ll just stay calm. If Khabib is going to be a ball of nerves everywhere, let him. That’s who he is, so I’m going to leave him alone. Whatever we do, we are going to make it right.
“So, if we need to be there walking out with both fighters, then that’s what we will do. If we need to stay in the corner while Islam comes to us after Umar’s fight’s done, then that’s what we’ll do. We’ll handle it. We’ve been in this situation many times, but we’ve never been in the situation where it’s a champion fight followed by a champion fight. Never been in that situation with one team, but we’ve been in the situation where it’s co-main event and then main event.”
Javier Mendez responds to critics claiming Umar Nurmagomedov doesn’t deserve the title shot vs. Merab Dvalisvili at UFC 311.
[autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag] has been very vocal about his thoughts on the merit of [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag]’s title shot.
The UFC bantamweight champion doesn’t see Nurmagomedov (18-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) deserving of the title opportunity, which is set to play out in the co-main event of UFC 311 on Jan. 18 in Inglewood, Calif. (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN, ESPN+). Dvalishvili (18-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC) thinks there are better deserving contenders in line, and some fans have agreed with his rhetoric.
[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag], trainer of Nurmagomedov, disagrees with Dvalishvili’s claims.
“This is what I say: When he fought Cory Sandhagen, UFC said that whoever wins that fight would fight for the title – whether it was going to be )Sean) O’Malley or Merab,” Mendez told Hablemos MMA in Spanish. “That’s what the UFC told Umar and Sandhagen. So why now that the fight is over, and Umar won, why is it that what UFC had said should no longer be true? UFC wants this fight. That’s why they brought Umar to the Sphere, right?
“When (Dvalishvili) won, and they interviewed him, and they said this is your next challenge, Merab said, ‘Oh, Dana needs to talk to me. He needs to get to know me as a person, and then we’ll talk about it.’ Why? The UFC wanted this fight. Umar didn’t say, ‘Hey, I need to fight for the title if I beat Sandhagen.’ No, they were the ones that said the winner would go for the title next, so that’s all we’re doing. Umar told me, ‘Look, coach. If they don’t give me the title, I just want to fight before Ramadan.’ That’s all. He just wanted to fight.”
On the flip side of this debate, some fans have suggested that Dvalishvili’s criticism doesn’t come from a place of wanting to see fairness play out in the division, but fear of losing his title.
“I don’t believe he’s scared of Umar. He’s a champion, and the champion doesn’t fear anyone,” Mendez said.
The Team Eagle camp has been famous for its high-level, sambo-based Dagestan fighters. It’s often assumed that a Team Eagle fighter will always enter about with a wrestling advantage.
However, this UFC 311 matchups is interesting, given that Dvalishvili is one of the most effective wrestlers today, and even out wrestled Olympic wrestling gold medalist Henry Cejudo last February at UFC 298.
Mendez thinks Nurmagomedov will have the advantage in both the striking and grappling department. He doesn’t think Nurmagomodov will struggle on the ground.
“The path to victory for us is both – we need to do both,” Mendez said. “Merab is really good at taking the fight to the ground, so I think we’ll have to fight in both areas, and I know that we’re going to beat in both striking and grappling. The thing that he has better than us is the conditioning, but you know what, we don’t need to do more than five rounds. We’re not doing 10 or seven, we’re doing five – only five. Umar can do five hard rounds no problem.”
For Javier Mendez, there’s little debate on who’s the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter today.
There were several storylines that remained consistent throughout 2024 with one of the biggest being the debate of who is the No. 1 pound-for-pound best fighter in MMA today.
The biggest instigator of that discussion was none other than UFC CEO [autotag]Dana White[/autotag], who insisted [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] was the only choice for the debate and didn’t entertain the possibility of other UFC champions, including [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] – who many believe is the pound-for-pound best fighter in the world today.
[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag], Makhachev’s trainer, thinks there shouldn’t be much of a debate, even if in reality it’s a discussion that will carry over for the majority of 2025.
“This is what I always say: How many fights does Jon Jones have in the last four years? Tell me. How many?” Mendez told Hablemos MMA in Spanish. “If you said six or seven, OK. But how many does he have? Two in four years.
“No, you need to fight more than that (for pound-for-pound best). If Islam were to do the same, I’d put Jon Jones at No. 1 – but he hasn’t fought (as much). If he had been active, then it’s a different conversation – but he’s barely fought. That why, that reason alone, I put Islam at No. 1.”
For Mendez, it’s also not only the activity level. Yes, Jones has only fought twice since 2021, while Makhachev has fought eight times. It’s also the level of competition.
“Islam’s fights have always been against No. 1,” Mendez said. “Alexander Volkanovski was the best featherweight in the world and pound-for-pound, and he fought him, and everyone he’s fought has been very tough. The styles of all those guys were very good.
“Jon Jones fought Miocic, who was (42), and hadn’t fought in like four years, so he wasn’t the same. Jon Jones is supreme. He’s an excellent talent and has never lost in his whole life. It’s tough to critique him, because he’s fought everyone, but he just hasn’t fought much in the last four years.”
For Mendez, there’s no debate. He thinks that people misunderstand the point of the discussion, which is why there’s a debate triggered. He respects Jones and sees him as the greatest fighter of all time, which is a different label than the pound-for-pound best.
“The pound-for-pound conversation is now,” Mendez said. “I’m not going around saying that Islam is the greatest of all time. I’m just saying he’s the pound-for-pound best right now. That’s all. I’m not saying anything else.”
Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) returns to the octagon on Jan. 18 in the main event of UFC 311, which goes down in Los Angeles, Calif. Makhachev defends his lightweight title in a rematch against Arman Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC).
The two fought back in April 2019. It was Tsarukyan’s UFC debut, which he took on short notice. The fight ended up going all 15 minutes, with Tsarukyan coming up short in a unanimous decision, but putting on an admirable effort.
Coach Javier Mendez had a feeling Islam Makhachev would fight Arman Tsarukyan again after their first bout in 2019.
[autotag]Arman Tsarukyan[/autotag] has worked his way back to a rematch with [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag], and this time it’s for the UFC lightweight title. [autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag] is not surprised one bit.
Mendez, leading coach at American Kickboxing Academy and Eagles MMA, had a feeling his student Makhachev would cross paths once again with Tsarukyan after the conclusion of their first bout in Saint Petersburg, Russia, back in 2019.
Makhachev welcomed Tsarukyan to the UFC in what’s safe to say was a very difficult debut. Yet, despite the tough task, the then 22-year-old Tsarukyan gave plenty of work to Makhachev and was able to see out a decision – something few fighters have done in recent years. Even in defeat, the Armenian fighter impressed many.
“I thought, ‘Man, that kid is very good, and he’s just going to get better with time as he continues fighting,'” Mendez told Hablemos MMA in Spanish. “That’s what I thought. Now, this time around, he’s in front of us, and I knew this was going to happen because he was at a good level when he first fought Islam and was very young. He didn’t have the experience.
“He’s going to make us work in this fight, but Islam is pound-for-pound No. 1, so I know he’s going to beat him. I feel very confident in Islam’s style. He’s the best of them all.”
Fast-forward almost six years, and Makhachev and Tsarukyan will run things back in the main event of UFC 311 – which takes place on Jan. 18 in Los Angeles. Mendez knows it’s going to be a tough fight, but contrary to what many are saying in the build up to the rematch, he doesn’t think it’ll be the toughest fight in Makhachev’s title reign.
“I don’t know if he’s the toughest fight,” Mendez explained. “Maybe he is, maybe he’s not. I do think he’s already had the toughest fight, which was against Dustin. Dustin brought the dog.
“If Arman brings the dog as well, Islam will have to bring out the dog in him if needed. Hopefully he doesn’t have to because it’s rough to fight like that. He can beat him in a much easier way, but if it comes down to it, I know Islam can bring out the dog in him, too.”
He crowned two UFC champions and helped others further their MMA careers. That’s why Mike Valle is MMA Junkie’s 2024 Coach of the Year.
[autotag]Mike Valle[/autotag]’s work has been seen in premiere MMA for a long time. However, 2024 was the year when his coaching really stood out.
The veteran trainer, who operates out of Chicago with VFS Academy, helped create two UFC champions this year and helped further the trajectories of other UFC and regional fighters.
Valle’s most notable work came through [autotag]Belal Muhammad[/autotag], who captured the UFC welterweight title after one of the longest and toughest title campaigns in the promotion’s history. It was also enforced by [autotag]Julianna Peña[/autotag] reclaiming her UFC women’s bantamweight belt, and prospect [autotag]Ignacio Bahamondes[/autotag]’ resurgence.
Belal Muhammad
Muhammad didn’t have it easy. The promotion didn’t favor him like they have with some of their other fighters, such as Sean O’Malley or Darren Till. There was no fast track to the belt. The general MMA fanbase, at least the majority of it, wasn’t vouching for him to get his due, either.
Valle stood by Muhammad’s side, knocking off one contender after the next. After a 10-fight unbeaten streak, which spanned five years, “Remember the Name” finally got his much deserved shot at UFC gold.
On July 27, 2024, Muhammad traveled to enemy territory to challenge British champion Leon Edwards in the main event of UFC 304. To many’s surprise, not only did Muhammad win, but he dominated Edwards over the course of 25 minutes, mixing up his striking and wrestling flawlessly.
Muhammad, the team captain of VFS, added the first UFC undisputed title to Valle’s 2024 run. It was a big moment for Valle and the whole team, who campaigned and supported Muhammad for years.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C998vARNn_M/?hl=en
Julianna Peña
It’s hard to become champion, and many say it’s even harder to stay champion. But statistically speaking, not many are able to win a UFC belt after losing it a first time, and that’s exactly what Peña did.
Peña stunned the MMA world in late 2021 after dethroning the greatest female MMA fighter of all time, Amanda Nunes, in a giant upset submission win. She then returned in July 2022 in an immediate rematch against the Brazilian, only to lose her belt in dominant fashion.
After losing the belt, the sport didn’t see Peña back in action until October 2024. Peña returned from injury after over two years of inactivity against defending champion Raquel Pennington. It felt like a lot what stacked against the “Venezuelan Vixen” yet she was able to leave UFC 307 as champion.
Sure, it was a highly debated decision, but it was a close, competitive fight where Peña did enough to get the on the right side of the opinions that matter. Peña added the second UFC title to Valle’s 2024. It was a big moment for the team.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DB1d2ZnpreS/?hl=en
Ignacio Bahamondes
Watch out lightweights, “La Jaula” is back.
After going 1-1 in 2023, Bahamodnes needed a big year if he wanted to re-spark the hype that he generated with his entry through Dana White’s Contender Series. Bahamodnes fought twice, picking up two highlight-reel finishes and two $50,000 Performance of the Night bonuses.
Bahamondes knocked out Christos Giagos in May and then pulled off an upset TKO win over Manuel Torres in September at The Sphere. Bahamodnes, 5-1 in his past six outings, is knocking on the door of the UFC lightweight rankings.
Sep 14, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Manuel Torres of Mexico (red gloves) fights Ignacio Bahamondes of Chile (blue gloves) during Riyadh Season Noche UFC 306 at The Sphere. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
Honorable mention
[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag] and [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] have won MMA Junkie’s Coach of the Year before, and the pairing will be a big staple for many years to come given their stable of fighters.
Although they didn’t win Coach of the Year in 2024, they were in the conversation and had to be mentioned.
Between Mendez and Khabib they have several fighters under their wing, but three specifically stood out: [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag], [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag], and [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag]. These three went undefeated in 2024, and picked up very important wins.
Makhachev fought once, successfully defending his UFC lightweight title against the always tough Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 302 in June. It was a wild fight, one of the best championship fights in recent memory, and Makhachev was able to end it by submission.
Umar competed twice, defeating Bekzat Almakhan in March and then Cory Sandhagen in August. This 2024 run, paired with what he’d done in years prior, got him a title shot against Merab Dvalishvili in the co-main event of UFC 311 on Jan. 18. This was Umar’s biggest year in his career.
Usman only fought once, but in that fight he was able to stay undefeated and retain his Bellator lightweight title. Usman dominated Alexandr Shabliy to win a unanimous decision back in September at Bellator Champions Series 4.
Two title defenses, and one title shot. Not a bad 2024 for Mended and Khabib as coaches.
Javier Mendez is not interested in UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev fighting Ilia Topuria – for now.
[autotag]Javier Mendez[/autotag] is not interested in UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] fighting [autotag]Ilia Topuria[/autotag] – for now.
Featherweight champion Topuria (16-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) teased a move up to 155 pounds and expressed interest in a potential fight with [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] (35-10 MMA, 23-10 UFC).
Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) dismissed Topuria as an opponent, but Mendez thinks if Topuria beats former champion Oliveira, it would legitimize him as a lightweight title challenger.
“Charles is not an easy fight for anybody, and I slightly favor Ilia because of his power and his boxing precision,” Mendez told Submission Radio. “Charles is great. He’s good with everything. He’s coming with the knees, he’s coming with this. So you can never count Charles out. He was a world champion for a reason. He’s a great competitor still, and him and Arman’s fight, he came really close a lot of times to submitting Arman, too. So you can never count him out. That guy is still is a world beater, and he could definitely be a title contender again real soon.
“So let’s say he does fight Ilia. Then all of a sudden, Charles beats him. Then all of a sudden we have a rematch with Charles, which would be warranted at that point. So let’s see what happens. But him coming up in weight and wanting to stay at lightweight, it’s a good step in the right direction vs. coming up to weight then staying back down at featherweight. That doesn’t really do very much for Islam. So if (Topuria) fights another lightweight at lightweight, that means OK, now people will look at him like he’s a lightweight. He’s a true legit lightweight.”
Makhachev’s next title defense comes in a rematch against Arman Tsarukyan in the UFC 311 headliner on Jan. 18.
“He’s motivated,” Mendez said of Topuria. “He’s a champion, for sure. He’s proven it. He’s gone up in weight. I also was told his coach said he was 187 (pounds). Islam, I don’t think has ever been that heavy. Islam, when he starts training camp two months out, Islam is about 179, 178.
“The guy is a great fighter. He’s got the best boxing hands in the business, I feel – best technical. He can do a lot of damage if he goes up in weight, but I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’m not interested in that fight whatsoever, at the present time. I’m interested in (Makhachev) defending against Arman, and then who knows – maybe the welterweight title is available at that particular time.”
