“He is always welcome to Dagestan” - MMA legend Khabib Nurmagomedov invites Muay Thai phenom Johan Ghazali to train with him

It's undeniable that Johan Ghazali has risen at an unprecedented rate, and one of the greatest fighters in mixed martial arts history extended an invitation to hone his skills further.

Khabib Nurmagomedov was in Malaysia for a speaking engagement when he met the Malaysian-American star at the World Trade Center Kuala Lumpur.

Ghazali and the Russian legend immediately conversed with one another, and Nurmagomedov said that the teenage phenom will always be welcome to train with him in Dagestan.

Nurmagomedov, who retired from MMA as the UFC lightweight world champion, said in a report from the News Straits Times:

"I know he is a good young striker, he told me in the future he wants to move to MMA when he finishes with Muay Thai. He is always welcome to Dagestan and train at our gym. In MMA you need to train in wrestling, and he will improve that by training with us."

Johan Ghazali, 17, holds an impressive 6-1 record in ONE Championship.

He's also coming off a solid first-round knockout win over Mexican slugger Josue Cruz at ONE 168: Denver earlier this month.

'Jojo' has yet to challenge for a world title in ONE Championship, but the young star already showed flashes of brilliance in his tenure.

Ghazali racked up five straight wins in his first five fights in the promotion and chalked up four knockouts against Padetsuk Fairtex, Tai Sor Jor Piek Uthai, Temirlan Bekmurzaev, and Edgar Tabares.

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Johan Ghazali says he's open to jumping to MMA later in his career

Johan Ghazali is fully committed to his Muay Thai career, but he might just take up Khabib Nurmagomedov's offer if he decides to jump to MMA.

The young rising star said in his media scrum at ONE 168 that he could jump to MMA later in his career.

At only 17 years old, Ghazali noted that he has plenty of time ahead of him and won't rush to any decisions when it comes to his professional career:

"I get this question a lot but I'm open to the possibility. Sometime down the line, like I said, I'm only 17, so 18, 19, 20, 21 22, 23, 24; I have time."