“The Real Madrid of MMA” - Fans react to Islam Makhachev and other Khabib Nurmagomedov protégés dominating as lightweight world champions

MMA fans recently voiced their opinions after noticing that Khabib Nurmagomedov's disciples are currently ruling the world of lightweight MMA. Nurmagomedov stands as the coach of the three lightweight champions in the top-tier MMA promotions of the world.

Nurmagomedov is one of the most respected lightweight champions in the history of the UFC. 'The Eagle' never endured a defeat in his pro-MMA career, including his time in the UFC. But, most of the MMA community believes that Nurmagomedov retired too early as he called curtains to his UFC career after defeating Justin Gaethje at UFC 254.

After dominating his rivals inside the octagon, Nurmagomedov followed in the footsteps of his late father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, to become an MMA coach.

A recent X update from @mma_orbit revealed that the former UFC lightweight champion enjoys similar success as a coach with three of his disciples, Islam Makhachev, Usman Nurmagomedov, and Gadzhi Rabadanov ruling the lightweight divisions of UFC, Bellator, and PFL, respectively.

The comments section of the update showcased MMA fans hailing Nurmagomedov for his success. One such comment read:

"Khabib is the Real Madrid Of MMA"

Others concurred:

"This is GOAT s*it. You make history for [your] self and help others to create history. His [late] dad would be proud of him."

"That's what is called taking over."

"Learn from the best... Khabib... ultimate."

Check out a few more reactions:

Fan reactions to @mma_orbit's X update.

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Khabib Nurmagomedov's former coach labeled his late father as "remarkable human being"

Khabib Nurmagomedov's quest to become the best in MMA started at an early age with his late father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. Khabib won multiple accolades in martial arts with his father being his primary coach. But he required some fine-tuning of his already formidable skills to make his mark in the UFC.

This is what led him to Javier Mendez's institute, the American Kickboxing Academy, where he trained for the entirety of his UFC career. But Mendez has mentioned multiple times that Khabib was already a brilliant fighter when he joined AKA.

Mendez has also credited Abdulmanap for Khabib's superb skills on several occasions. In one of his recent Instagram posts, Mendez paid tribute to Khabib's father once more, labeling him the "best coach" ever. A part of the caption to his Instagram post read:

"I had the privilege of knowing Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, in 2014, 2 years after Khabib started training with me and I can confidently say he was the best coach I ever met. A remarkable human being. A true humanitarian with a beautiful heart, he embodied discipline and humility as a coach. What I admired most about him was his unwavering trust in me as a coach for his son, @khabib_nurmagomedov who was destined for greatness..."