Not Khabib Nurmagomedov or Islam Makhachev, coach Javier Mendez lauds Bellator champ as the most talented fight he's ever trained: "He's unbelievable"
AKA coach Javier Mendez recently made a surprising revelation as he lauded a current Bellator champion as the most talented fighter he has ever trained. The statement was significant as many assumed he would name Khabib Nurmagomedov or even Islam Makhachev.
Mendez has trained a who's who of MMA legends throughout his incredible coaching career at AKA. In addition to Nurmagomedov and Makhahev, the gym has produced several world champions, including Daniel Cormier and Cain Velasquez, both of whom were considered among the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world at the peak of their careers.
While speaking to Red Corner MMA, the AKA coach lavished praise on reigning Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov. The 26-year-old, a cousin of Khabib, splits his training time between his tutelage as well as at the San Jose-based gym. Mendez noted that Nurmagomedov had unique abilities and believes he will join the upper echelon, being referred to as an all-time great in the coming years:
"I see Usman [Nurmagomedov] as being pound-for-pound the greatest fighter myself, he's got all the attributes. He's the most talented I've ever trained... If at one point he never goes [to the UFC], great. He's still gonna be regarded as one of the great ones... what he does in that cage is like nobody. I've never seen anybody do the transitions, the movement that he does. He's unbelievable and he's only 26, he's only getting better." [13:32]
Check out the full interview with Javier Mendez below:
Javier Mendez discusses uncertainty surrounding Umar Nurmagomedov's bantamweight title shot
In addition to discussing Usman Nurmagomedov's talent, AKA coach Javier Mendez discussed the uncertainty surrounding the Bellator champion's brother Umar's UFC bantamweight title shot.
During the aforementioned interview, Mendez compared Nurmagomedov's current situation to his cousin Khabib and mentioned that becoming the bantamweight champion is inevitable:
"All [Nurmagomedov's] gonna do is keep beating people they put in front of him. So when the title comes, he's going to beat that guy. When the next guy comes, he's going to beat that guy, so whoever comes in front of Umar, he's going to beat. So to me, maybe go after the title of 29-0 like Khabib... He'll get the title in between that." [15:08]
Check out Javier Mendez's video featuring Usman and Umar Nurmagomedov following their sparring session below: