5 best Khabib Nurmagomedov moments outside of the octagon
Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the most popular names in MMA, despite the fact that he retired back in 2020. 'The Eagle' slipped into the role of a coach and wowed fans with his skill and fight IQ when it came to preparing other mixed martial artists for war inside the octagon.
However, he has since retired from coaching as well, missing out on standing in the corner of his compatriot, Islam Makhachev, during the latter's two fights with the great Alexander Volkanovski. Despite the dominance fans have come to expect from him as both a fighter and coach, he is also remembered for more.
Khabib Nurmagomedov was known for having an underrated sense of humor and an incomparable love for his family. Both have led to numerous memorable moments outside the cage, some of which have become part of modern-day MMA folklore.
#5. Khabib Nurmagomedov's love for his father
Ahead of his penultimate MMA fight, which took place against Dustin Poirier at UFC 242, Khabib Nurmagomedov was aglow due to having his father, the late great Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, in his corner. During the pre-fight media proceedings, 'The Eagle' was being interviewed about the fight.
Instead, he requested that the surrounding reporters ask him about his father, saying (at 0:06 minutes of the video) the following:
"You guys cannot, like, understand how I love my father. Let's talk about my father. I like this. I like this. Who have a question about my father? Please, please, I wanna talk about my father."
It was a rare departure from his usual stoic disposition. Even while enduring the draining agony of a weight cut, Nurmagomedov was all smiles as he implored reporters to ask him more questions about his father.
#4. Khabib Nurmagomedov congratulates Jan Błachowicz
At UFC 259, Jan Błachowicz had one of the biggest fights of his career, when he defended his newly minted UFC light heavyweight title against the then reigning middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. He did so by cleverly outstriking 'The Last Stylebender,' as well as outwrestling him, to the surprise of many.
After the bout, Khabib Nurmagomedov approached the 205-pound champion, who often credits his knockouts to the 'legendary Polish power.' To that, Nurmagomedov praised him for using his wrestling instead, before memorably exclaiming (at 0:07 minutes):
"Why you win? Two takedown. Takedown is wrestling. Wrestling is power."
It was a powerful statement and highlighted the importance that Nurmagomedov gives to wrestling, especially in light of Błachowicz's past struggles with defending takedowns against the strongest wrestlers in his division.
#3. Khabib Nurmagomedov and sunglasses
In one of his more well-known moments on social media, Khabib Nurmagomedov was at the American Kickboxing Academy, in the company of various training partners and coaches. During a conversation with one of them, Nurmagomedov, who was holding another fighter's sunglasses, was asked to return them.
This drew the unbeaten lightweight's confusion, due to the 'sun' in sunglasses sounding like 'son,' which prompted him to ask the following:
"Sunglasses? He have son?"
It was a simple moment, which took place during Khabib Nurmagomedov's younger days, given that he was still learning how to speak English and later taunted his career rival, Tony Ferguson, for wearing sunglasses indoors.
#2. Khabib Nurmagomedov answers whether he has submitted Daniel Cormier before
Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the greatest grapplers that the sport has ever seen. His combination of brutal ground-and-pound, elite-level top control and slick submission game allowed him to embark on an undefeated streak, the likes of which the UFC lightweight division has never seen.
Meanwhile, Daniel Cormier is a former UFC two-division champion, whose Olympic-level wrestling skills led him to the peak of success at light heavyweight and heavyweight. Naturally, when Nurmagomedov was asked if he has ever submitted Cormier in training, he was frank (at 0:14 minutes):
"No, I never make him tap. DC is, like, too big, he is like rock, you know? He's like very big bear. He's very strong. Like people when they watch on him, they think he's like short, fat heavyweight, you know? But when people contact with him, they understand he's completely different."
Daniel Cormier is among several UFC fighters, both past and present, whose physiques were heavily scrutinized, as 'DC' was always on the more rotund side. However, as proven by his many performances in the cage, he was an athletic specimen with a lifetime of high-level wrestling skill.
#1. Khabib Nurmagomedov tells the world that Islam Makhachev would fight King Kong
UFC 294 was originally meant to be headlined by Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira. Unfortunately, a cut suffered in the last round of the Brazilian's final sparring session led to his withdrawal from the bout. In his place, Alexander Volkanovski stepped in on short-notice.
When asked about the difficulty in accepting a short-notice opponent, Nurmagomedov spoke on Makhachev's behalf, claiming that his protege would fight anyone and everyone, so long as they could make 155 pounds, even King Kong:
"Islam is a world champion right now. If somebody can make 155, and UFC say this guy's a contender, who cares? Doesn't matter. It doesn't matter who. If King Kong can make 155, okay bring this guy here."
Islam Makhachev's willingness to take on Alexander Volkanovski earned him widespread praise from the MMA community, as other UFC champions, like Jon Jones, have previously refused to take on short-notice opponents in the past.