Umar Nurmagomedov put yet another win on his record in the first UFC event of the year, moving to 16-0 as he KO'd Rani Barcelos.
Khabib Nurmagomedov's cousin is looking to become the next big name in the sport as he gets better and better with each fight. On another note, 'The Eagle' recently announced that he'd be stepping away from the sport, which left fans wondering what would happen to his coaching role at AKA.
American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, California, is where the bulk of Dagestani fighters train, including the likes of UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov and Umar Nurmagomedov.
In a recent interview with ESPN, an interviewer asked Umar Nurmagomedov whether his cousin Khabib would corner him if he got himself a title shot. The unbeaten bantamweight replied:
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"I will talk with him about this. I don't promise, but I have to try to get him back for sure."
Umar Nurmagomedov also revealed that he would train with Islam Makhachev for the latter's next fight against featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. Still, he is looking to get back into the ring himself ASAP.
The Dagestani fighter impressed the MMA world with his latest win as he knocked his opponent out in the very first round of the fight.
Take a look at the interview (quotes from 4:35 onwards):
Umar Nurmagomedov put the entire division on notice as he looks to return to action on March 4
Umar Nurmagomedov is becoming a force to reckon with in the bantamweight division. The young protege of 'The Eagle' is unbeaten and claims that fighters at 135lbs are scared to fight him.
In his post-fight octagon interview, he put the entire division on notice and called out the 135lbs roster:
"I will be there [on] 4th March, guys. I don't know why my division don't say nothing [to my callouts]? I told them [UFC] I want to fight with anybody, nobody don't say, 'Ay! I'm here I'm going to fight you too.' Where are you guys? I'm here in the cage, March 4th [at UFC 285], I will be ready."
Nurmagomedov came out relatively unscathed after his first-round knockout against Barcelos, which is why he is looking to get another fight scheduled so quickly. Nurmagomedov is on the hunt for the title and is looking to strengthen his case for title contention in a stacked division.
Take a look at the interview: