Khabib Nurmagomedov will not train in AKA to prepare for Justin Gaethje ahead of their fight on UFC 254

Reigning UFC lightweight king Khabib Nurmagomedov will be back in action on October 24 at UFC 254, as he defends his belt against surging contender and interim champion Justin Gaethje. Many fans and experts believe this might be Khabib Nurmagomedov's biggest test inside the octagon yet considering Gaethje's pushing forward style and college wrestling pedigree.

With the bout scheduled in October, Khabib Nurmagomedov is looking to start his preparations for Gaethje soon. But according to his coach Javier Mendez, Khabib will not be training at American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) this time. He is looking to train solely in his homeland of Russia.

And the main reason for this decision is that the lightweight champion is not comfortable in traveling to the west coast of the United States at the moment because of the global outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, especially the surge of recent cases on the west coast. And the fact that his father passed away after contracting COVID-19, Khabib Nurmagomedov's decision is justified.

“What I do know is that [COVID-19] is too high in California, and Khabib is not comfortable coming here to train. So I’m gonna go to Dagestan and train over there,” said Javier Mendez, Khabib's head coach, during a recent interview with ESPN MMA.

This will be the first time in his career Khabib Nurmagomedov won't train at AKA for his fight. AKA has been home of the Dagestani fighter for years where other former champions like Daniel Cormier, Luke Rockhold, Cain Velasquez also train.

Also, the venue of the UFC 254 is yet to be announced. But according to Mendez Fight Island might be the most probable destination at the moment. He believes this is the reason the UFC built this facility. But nothing can be confirmed until the company announces something officially. And he also mentioned that he is ready to travel anywhere "The Eagle" decides to train before his 29th professional fight.

“I don’t know where the fights gonna be for sure, but I know this. I’m going to him. That’s a hundred percent. I’m going to go to Dagestan or wherever he chooses to go. We’re not training in San Jose." Mendez said.

“We’ve got two choices, right? Las Vegas or Fight Island. I’m thinking what did they make Fight Island for, but they haven’t said it yet.” He added.

UFC 249 Ferguson v Gaethje: Gaethje became the interim lightweight champion after stopping Tony

Khabib Nurmagomedov hasn't fought since defending his title successfully for the 2nd time at UFC 242 against Dustin Poirier in Abu Dhabi. After the recent and very tragic demise of Khabib Nurmagomedov's father, mentor, and coach Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, the Russian's fighting future looked very uncertain. He was very close to his father throughout his life and many including his teammate Daniel Cormier believed it might cause too much damage to the Dagestan born fighter and he might never fight again.

But now that he is scheduled to be back, he has a big challenge in front of him in the form of Gaethje.

Gaethje stepped in to replace Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 249 as the Russian couldn't travel to the US due to COVID-19. "The Highlight" put on a stellar performance as he defeated Tony Ferguson to capture the interim lightweight title.

Gaethje is known for his powerful fearless boxing style and knockout power. But he is also an NCAA wrestler and has the potential to present Khabib Nurmagomedov with his sternest test once the fight goes to the ground. ‘The Highlight’ has kept this weapon concealed for his fighting career and elected to engage in a strike heavy offense.

The champion will know this and look to train and devise a game plan to counter any threat posed that night.

What do you think of Khabib Nurmagomedov's decision to not train at his long time gym for the upcoming fight? Let us know in the comments.