Tag: Khabib Nurmagomedov

UFC Fight Night 217’s Umar Nurmagomedov says Khabib ‘cannot go away’ from coaching

Umar Nurmagomedov opens up about not having Khabib in his corner at UFC Fight Night 217.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] won’t have Khabib in his corner at UFC Fight Night 217.

Nurmagomedov (15-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) faces Raoni Barcelos (17-3 MMA, 6-2 UFC) in Saturday’s main card opener at the UFC Apex. The card streams on ESPN+.

[autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag], who along with Javier Mendez won MMA Junkie’s Coaches of the Year for 2022, recently announced that he’ll be stepping away from coaching. But his cousin, Umar, still expects to work with him and said all this means is that Khabib will be traveling less.

“This guy my brother and with me. He cannot go away,” Nurmagomedov told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at UFC Fight Night 217 media day. “I was calling him, talking to him about this fight, about cutting weight. This guy just stopping too much fly (traveling). When I go home, I’ll be training with him. I will go to his home and say to him, ‘Hey,let’s go to training.’ But even this guy is all the time training. He cannot stop.”

Nurmagomedov’s training partners, UFC champ Islam Makhachev and Bellator champ Usman Nurmagomedov, recently captured gold in their respective organizations. While the unbeaten prospect expects to have a similar career trajectory, he’s had a hard time finding opponents.

“I try. I tried to call guys, but nobody want to take this fight with me,” Nurmagomedov said. “I talk with Sean Shelby, I was taking with him, and he said, ‘Hey, I cannot find fight for you.’ And when they asked me if I would fight with Barcelos, I said, ‘Yes, I don’t care with who.’ Even if somebody will be doing their debut, I will fight. I want to be active.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 217.

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Spinning Back Clique: Dana White controversy, Jake Paul to PFL, Khabib, more (noon ET)

Join us for this week’s live stream of “Spinning Back Clique” looking at the biggest news and topics in MMA.

Check out this week’s “Spinning Back Clique,” MMA Junkie’s weekly live show that takes a spin through the biggest topics in mixed martial arts. This week’s panel of Mike Bohn, Nolan King and Danny Segura will join host “Gorgeous” George Garcia live at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) to discuss and debate:

  • Dana White slapping controversy: UFC president [autotag]Dana White[/autotag] was caught on camera on New Year’s Eve slapping his wife twice after she slapped him. White once said, perhaps now infamously, that you “don’t come back” from putting your hands on a woman. So far, UFC parent company Endeavor and broadcast partner ESPN have been mum. White’s also getting plenty of support from fans and some of his fighters, who apparently think he was justified hitting his wife back. So what will the fallout be, if anything, and what does it say about the sport if there are no repercussions for him?
  • Jake Paul signs with PFL: [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] has been a thorn in MMA’s side for a while. Now the YouTube star-turned-boxer is heading to the PFL, for which he’ll take part in what are expected to be special MMA pay-per-view matchups. Will his move change the landscape of the sport?
  • Khabib’s coaching future: Former UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag], who retired unbeaten, has been spending plenty of time coaching – and was one of MMA Junkie’s Coaches of the Year for 2022. But now he’s making rumblings that he might be stepping away from it. What does that mean?
  • Dillon Danis’ stalled career: [autotag]Dillon Danis[/autotag] has been making all kinds of noise outside of competition. He hasn’t fought in MMA for three and a half years, and a boxing match between him and KSI was set – until Danis withdrew. Are we done with him?
  • Jon Jones’ latest tease: Former UFC light heavyweight champion [autotag]Jon Jones[/autotag] once again teased a return and said he’s going to have a big 2023. Former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo, who has been working with him, said he’ll be the Fighter of the Year. We’re almost three years removed from Jones’ most recent fight. Will it be fact or fiction that he’s going to return at heavyweight to be the sport’s best again?

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel. You can watch this week’s episode in the video above.

Khabib Nurmagomedov fuels reports of stepping away from coaching after sharing Instagram post

Like he did as a fighter, Khabib Nurmagomedov very well may be stepping away from coaching while he’s on top.

Former UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] stepped away from competition when he was at the top of his game – and now he signals he might do the same after an elite year of coaching.

Following multiple reports from Russian news outlets, Nurmagomedov on Saturday shared a post from Za Khabiba, a Nurmagomedov-centric Instagram page, which displayed a picture of the UFC Hall of Famer with the following caption (translated from Russian to English).

“Khabib is leaving the MMA industry. It’s about coaching and everything else related to MMA. The reason is Khabib’s desire to devote more time to his family.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CnCsy27M8s_/

While Nurmagomedov, 34, did not directly say he would step away from coaching altogether, he cryptically alluded to a “decision” he recently made pertinent to his team in an Instagram post Thursday.

“Concluding the year,” Nurmagomedov wrote in Russian. “Take care brothers. The year certainly turned out to be a very busy and successful. I hope my decision is only for the best, a big hug to you all. Thank you. You were a big reason for my success in sports.”

Pro MMA fighter Shamil Zavurov, one of Nurmagomedov’s closest friends and confidants, also alluded to Nurmagomedov’s step back in an Instagram post Saturday.

“He’s left this sport, but the sport spirit will never leave him,” Zavurov wrote. “That was good training.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CnIE2SyoS5L/

Nurmagomedov retired from MMA in October 2020 with a perfect record of 29-0 record. He went straight into coaching his training partners and teammates at American Kickboxing Academy.

Alongside AKA head coach Javier Mendez, Nurmagomedov was named MMA Junkie’s 2022 Coach of the Year after his pupils compiled a 19-2 record in major organizations. That included Islam Makhachev’s UFC title victory and Usman Nurmagomedov’s Bellator title victory.

Makhachev has his upcoming first title defense on Feb. 11 at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia, where he’ll take on featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. It’s unclear if Nurmagomedov will be in Makhachev’s corner.

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MMA Junkie’s 2022 Coaches of the Year: Khabib Nurmagomedov and Javier Mendez

They crowned UFC and Bellator champions in 2022. Khabib Nurmagomedov and Javier Mendez are MMA Junkie’s 2022 Coaches of the Year.

[autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] and Javier Mendez long have had their footprints in the MMA world. However, in 2022 this pairing became nearly unstoppable.

After Nurmagomedov said goodbye to his professional fighting career in late 2020 and vacated the UFC lightweight title, he switched to a coaching role – filling in the shoes of his father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, who died earlier that year. In 2021, the world saw a glimpse of what was to come – a strict, passionate and dedicated mentor who demands nothing but the best from his fighters.

But that all had to wait until 2022 for it to fully unfold.

This past year, Nurmagomedov, along with Mendez, his longtime head coach at American Kickboxing Academy, formed a coalition that tore through MMA across several different promotions.

Together, this coaching pair went 19-2 in 2022. And in that campaign, they captured the UFC and Bellator lightweight titles, plus built several prospects and legit contenders in the UFC, Bellator and ONE Championship.

Islam Makhachev

Islam Makhachev was by far the biggest and most successful product of the Nurmagomedov-Mendez coaching duo.

The 31-year-old quickly dispatched Bobby Green in March with a first-round TKO, then returned in October to claim the vacant UFC lightweight title. He did so by submitting the man with the record for most submissions in UFC history, Charles Oliveira. Makhachev also showed in his title win an incredible development in the striking department.

Usman Nurmagomedov

Nurmagomedov and Mendez’s success went beyond the UFC. In Bellator, the team also crowned a champion when Usman Nurmagomedov dethroned tough veteran Patricky Freire to remain unbeaten and put gold around his waist at Bellator 288 in November. Usman went 2-0 in 2022; he submitted Chris Gonzalez in less than three minutes in July. Usman is just 24.

Belal Muhammad

Belal Muhammad was a late addition to the squad, but even then, there were noticeable improvements in the little time Muhammad worked with Khabib Nurmagomedov and Mendez. Muhammad trained with the two for what was his final fight in 2022, a key welterweight showdown with then-unbeaten contender Sean Brady at UFC 280 in October.

Muhammad, who had just one finish in his past 13 fights, picked up a great stoppage and scored a second-round TKO to win a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus. Muhammad attributed much of his success to Nurmagomedov and Mendez.

Umar Nurmagomedov

Umar Nurmagomedov didn’t win a championship like Makhachev or Usman Nurmagomedov and didn’t solidify title contention like Muhammad, but he did climb the rankings while staying undefeated in the sport’s toughest division.

The bantamweight went 2-0 in 2022. He submitted Brian Kelleher in March, then outpointed Nate Maness in June. At just 26, Umar looks to be a serious threat at 135 pounds and a man who one day could fight for UFC gold.

More

  • Saygid Izagakhmaev – 3-0 (ONE Championship)
  • Gadhzi Rabadanov 3-0 (Bellator)
  • Imamshafi Aliev 2-0 (Bellator)
  • Islam Mamedov 2-1 (Eagle FC, Bellator)
  • Abubakar Nurmagomedov 1-0 (UFC)
  • Tagir Ulanbekov 1-1 (UFC)

There’s no denying the Nurmagomedov and Mendez partnership is off to a phenomenal start. This is just the second year of their venture together as coaches, and they’ve already accomplished plenty. It’s hard to imagine a future in which they don’t produce more champions in major organizations.

Given what was done this year and what’s to come, Nurmagomedov and Mendez were a clear choice for MMA Junkie’s 2022 Coaches of the Year.

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Video: Is Khabib Nurmagomedov the frontrunner for MMA Coach of the Year?

If not Khabib Nurmagomedov for MMA Coach of the Year, then who has had a better year in the corner?

[autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] has seen his team claim two major titles in 2022 and a whole lot of other wins to go along with it.

Nurmagomedov, the UFC Hall of Famer and former lightweight champion, took over the role of coach from his late father after he retired from MMA competition in October 2022. Following his unbeaten career inside the cage, “The Eagle” has thrived in his new position.

Just in the past two months alone, Nurmagomedov’s pupil and longtime friend Islam Makhachev won the UFC lightweight title, while his cousin, Usman Nurmagomedov, captured the Bellator lightweight strap.

With a number of other successful fighters on his team, Nurmagomedov has put himself on the short list for 2022 MMA Coach of the Year. Will he capture the honor, though?

Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Nolan King, Brian “Goze” Garcia and Mike Bohn answered that question and more with host “Gorgeous” George Garcia. You can watch their discussion in the video above. And don’t miss this week’s full episode below.

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel.

Khabib Nurmagomedov explains why he’ll never break his retirement promise to his mother

UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov won’t unretire because he can’t. There’s no way he’ll break his promise to his mother, he said.

TORONTO – Many people are aware of the conversation [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] had with his mother in which he told her he’d never fight again.

But what they might not realize is that retirement promise is reflective of greater attitude and perspective.

At a Class A Events conversation held recently in Toronto, Nurmagomedov explained how one of his core values is the respect he has for his mother.

“Because of I finish my career, because I promise mother, that’s why this one question, discussion between me and my mother become very famous,” Nurmagomedov said. “But we had a lot of different things people don’t know about this. Not only this promise. I follow not only this promise to my mother. I follow everything about Mother. You can have friends or kids, whatever. You can have whatever you want, but you’re never going to have one more mother. You have only one mother. For me, it’s everything. For me, it’s everything.”

For Nurmagomedov, fighting has long been a family affair. His father, the late Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, is considered by many one of the greatest MMA minds of all time. Abdulmanap coached his son until his death in 2020. Nurmagomedov credits his parents with his success.

“I love mother because of millions and millions of reason,” Nurmagomedov said. “I know even in Dagestan, this is not about Dagestan, but I know a lot of people have bad relationship with parents. I really, really don’t understand this. How can people have bad relationship with parents? Yes, mother, for me is everything. Even now, she is still with me, like living with me in same house. I treat her like queen.”

Watch the full 52-minute conversation with Nurmagomedov below.

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‘Nobody ever did this in MMA before’: Khabib Nurmagomedov ready to ‘take over’ as coach

Khabib Nurmagomedov stood out in the cage during a dominant and undefeated career. Now he’s trying to do unprecedented things as a coach.

[autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] made himself stand out in the cage during a dominant career that saw him go undefeated and claim the UFC lightweight title. Now he’s trying to do unprecedented things as a coach.

So far, so good for Nurmagomedov. The UFC Hall of Famer, who retired in October 2020 after his father, Abdulmanap, passed away, has been nothing short of spectacular as a coach. His team currently houses reigning UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, reigning Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov, and plenty of other successful names.

When Abdulmanap passed, Nurmagomedov made a promise to his mother that he would retire from competition for good and take over the role of coach. He’s stuck true to his word, and the transition has been nothing short of seamless. According to ESPN MMA, seven of the most notable fighters from Nurmagomedov’s team hold a combined record of 142-11-3. That doesn’t include some of the lesser-known names, either.

Nurmagomedov said he’s proud to carry the torch from his father, and he’s not oblivious to the success of his athletes.

“Right now we have current UFC and Bellator lightweight champions,” Nurmagomedov said at a recent public appearance for Class A Events/Penny Appeal Canada. This is amazing. I hear long time ago when one guy was talking about, ‘We here to take over.’ But we here to take over. And you what’s interesting is I coach not a lot of people. I coach people that was around me when I was active fighter, this is maybe like 12-15 guys. Like 13 people we have combined win in MMA almost 300 fights. This is crazy. Nobody ever did this in MMA before. It’s never happened.

“I’m very happy because of this because it was my father’s hard work. The way how he invest in us, the way how he teach us. The way how he push us. It’s everything. Right now, his legacy keeps going.”

If there’s one thing Nurmagomedov is bred not to do, it’s rest on his laurels. The short-term success since Nurmagomedov’s take over speaks for itself, but the truly elite teams in MMA have a track record that lasts years, such as the experience of his corner parter and American Kickboxing Academy coach Javier Mendez.

Nurmagomedov’s team is poised to gets there, though. But it’s only going to happen if the hard work continues to happen. There will be no taking the foot of the gas pedal, and Nurmagomedov said he’ll be at the helm to make sure nothing starts to slip.

“First of all you have to follow my rules,” Nurmagomedov said. “I don’t think I’m nice coach. I’m nice person. I’m not bad person, but as a coach, I’m not nice person. I’m not joking. … People when they join my training camp, they don’t understand a lot of things. The way how I watch how guys training in MMA, they do a lot of stuff they’re not supposed to do.

“They do one hour mitts work of CrossFit. I tell my guys always, ‘If you want to become successful MMA fighter and you’re from Dagestan and you know how to wrestle, every day you need to learn how to grapple and wrestle one hour. If you don’t wrestle and grapple one hour every day, this is not MMA training.'”

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Conor McGregor goes on tirade against Joe Rogan over UFC 229 commentary, insults Khabib Nurmagomedov (again)

Conor McGregor went haywire once again on Twitter as he insulted Joe Rogan, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and pro wrestler “MJF”.

[autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag] is at it again.

In a string of tweets Wednesday evening, McGregor seemed to live-tweet a rewatch of his UFC 229 bout against rival [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag]. That fight took place in October 2019, and McGregor lost by fourth-round submission.

McGregor, who has not competed in MMA since he suffered a broken leg in a loss to Dustin Poirier in July 2021, took particular exception with [autotag]Joe Rogan[/autotag] for his commentary of the bout. He also voiced confidence in his abilities going forward, though as McGregor films a remake of the movie “Road House,” it’s unclear when that next bout will come.

In addition to criticism of Rogan, McGregor took a stab at Nurmagomedov possibly in response to recent comments made by the former Russian champion.

Pro wrestler Maxwell Jacob Friedman, a.k.a. “MJF” also became a target in the streamline of insults as McGregor came to the defense of fellow Cage Warriors alumnus and rising UFC star [autotag]Paddy Pimblett[/autotag].

Scroll below to see McGregor’s latest Twitter tirade.

Khabib Nurmagomedov names three opponents he wished he fought – including Tony Ferguson

Khabib Nurmagomedov had a perfect career, but he says there are three UFC fights that eluded him.

TORONTO – [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] had a perfect career, but three fights eluded him.

Nurmagomedov’s UFC lightweight title reign included wins over Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier and finally Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 to cap off his undefeated run as a mixed martial artist.

The one fight that got away for the now-retired Nurmagomedov is the obvious one against [autotag]Tony Ferguson[/autotag], which was canceled five times for various reasons.

“Of course it was Tony Ferguson for sure,” Nurmagomedov said during a Sunday speaking appearance in Toronto for Class A Events/Penny Appeal Canada. “But this has never happened.”

But Nurmagomedov (29-0 MMA, 13-0 UFC) said there were two other fighters he was interested in facing. Although he respects him greatly, Nurmagomedov catered to the Canadian crowd by mentioning former two-division champion and one of the greatest fighters of all time, [autotag]Georges St-Pierre[/autotag], as well as former WEC and UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Anthony Pettis[/autotag].

“In my mind? Yes, it was couple fighters – it was couple fighters for sure,” Nurmagomedov said. “OK, GSP, if you guys want – but I respect this guy a lot. I grew up with his fights. When he became UFC Champion in 2007, I (hadn’t started) my professional career. I was an amateur fighter and I watched a lot of his fights with my father. GSP was like a role model in MMA for me. If you guys want (that) fight, OK – let’s say GSP.

“And I think it was 2014-15 when Anthony Pettis was UFC champion. (At) that time, I really, really wanted to fight this guy, but then he lost his title vs. Rafael dos Anjos. After that, his career go down – he never came back. It was Anthony Pettis, Tony Ferguson and Canadian superstar GSP.”

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Undefeated Umar Nurmagomedov gets next UFC assignment, will face Raoni Barcelos in January

Umar Nurmagomedov will look to make it 4-0 in the UFC in January.

Undefeated UFC bantamweight [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] has his first fight of 2023 booked.

The younger cousin of [autotag]Khabib Nurmagomedov[/autotag] will step into the UFC’s octagon for the fourth time when he faces off against [autotag]Raoni Barcelos[/autotag] on Jan. 14. A source with knowledge of the booking confirmed the matchup with MMA Junkie following the first report from ESPN. Nurmagomedov’s manager Ali Abdelaziz also publicly acknowledged the pairing.

The UFC Fight Night event will take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and is headlined by Kelvin Gastelum vs. Nassourdine Imavov.

The 26-year-old Nurmagomedov (15-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) is off to a hot start in his young UFC career. After finishing his first two opponents, Sergey Morozov and Brian Kelleher, he went the distance with Nate Maness in June, winning a unanimous decision.

Barcelos (17-3 MMA, 6-2 UFC) has been under the UFC’s banner since July 2018. During that stretch, he has defeated six opponents, including a unanimous decision win over Trevin Jones in October.

With the addition, the Jan. 14 lineup includes:

  • Kelvin Gastelum vs. Nassourdine Imavov
  • Raoni Barcelos vs. Umar Nurmagomedov
  • Jarno Errens vs. David Onama
  • Carlos Hernandez vs. Allan Nascimento
  • Geoff Neal vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov
  • Jimmy Flick vs. Jeff Molina
  • Raquel Pennington vs. Ketlen Vieira
  • Daniel Argueta vs. Isaac Dulgarian
  • Dan Ige vs. Damon Jackson

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