Khabib Nurmagomedov - The Undefeated Eagle

1. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Details

2. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Biography

2.1. Who is Khabib Khabib Nurmagomedov?

Khabib Nurmagomedov, born in September 1988, is an undefeated Russian mixed martial artist. No one is more qualified than Khabib Nurmagomedov to provide an unbiased perspective. His non-stop takedowns and incredible chain-wrestling are hallmarks of his undefeated UFC Lightweight Championship record of 28-0. He is also a judo black belt and two-time Combat Sambo World Champion.

He has defeated multiple black belts in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with his top wrestling skills and incredibly ferocious ground and pound, successfully dismissing the vast majority of submission attempts.

Where is Khabib Nurmagomedov now?

In October 2020, after retiring, Khabib is currently coaching at American Kickboxing Academy. He is currently coaching and cornering UFC fighters Islam Makhachev, Tagir Ulanbekov, Abubakr Nurmagomedov, Umar Nurmagomedov, Zubaria Tukhugov, including Bellator fighters Islam Mamedov abd Gadzhi Rabadanov and Usman Nurmagomedov.

2.2. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Early life and Amateur Fighting

When Khabib was eight years old, his family moved from Sildi to Russia. His father built a gym on the ground floor of their house. He began taking interest in MMA when he saw people training at the gym. He started training under the guidance of his father , Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. His father has worked as an athlete and veteran in the Soviet Army and taught sambo and judo in the military.

In this video you can see Khabib wrestling with a bear depicting he was always keen on wrestling and becoming a professional athlete.

At the age of 12 in 2001, his family moved to Makhachkala , where he started training in wrestling. In 2004, he started training for judo.

In 2006, when he was 17, Khabib was training under his father in combat sambo.

He was highly inspired by the three  American boxers, Muhammad Ali, Brazilian  footballer Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima, and Mike Tyson.

His father wanted him to challenge in a gi-jacket, it was difficult for Khabib to transition from wrestling to judo. He was trained under Jafar Jafarov who taught him judo techniques. 

2.3. How did he start?

In September 2008, Khabib made his professional MMA debut. He won four fights in less than a month. He secured a triangle choke on Vusal Bayramov at the CFSU Champion League.

On October 11th, after defeating three of his opponents at the Atrium Cup Tournament in Moscow, he was awarded the title of the first-ever champion of the tournament. His winning streak continued for the next three years, with 11 victories out of 12 opponents.

In 2009, Khabib achieved his M1 Global debut as he defeated Shahbulat Shamhalaev via armbar in the first round.

There were several notable finishes, including a first-round armbar finish of future Bellator championship candidate Shahbulat Shamhalaev, who was making his M-1 Global debut at the time. As part of the ProFC promotion's 2011 season, he fought in seven fights, winning them all by way of submission and TKO.

Khabib’s 16–0 record on the National circuits of Russia and Ukraine drew the curiosity of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) who expressed interest in signing him up.

ProFC Lawsuits against Khabib Nurmagomedov

His father disclosed in an interview that they had 11 court lawsuits pending against ProFC as a consequence of a contract disagreement with the organization, which was challenging the authenticity of Khabib's UFC contract. After losing six trials and winning five, they came to a deal and Khabib was able to continue his legal profession without hindrance.

3. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Historic Fights

3.1. Ultimate Fighting Championship - Lightweight Division

In 2011, Khabib signed his first contract with a six-fight deal to fight in the Lightweight Ultimate Fighting Championship(UFC).

Khabib vs. Kamal Shalorus

In January 2012, Khabib competed at UFC FX 1, where he won against Kamal Shalorus via submission in round 3.

Khabib vs. Thiago Tavares

At UFC 160, Khabib competed against Thiago Tavares in January, 2013 and won via KO in round 1.  

Khabib vs. Gleison TibauGleison Tibau

In July 2012, at UFC 148, Khabib fought and won against Gleison Tibau via unanimous decision.

Khabib vs. Abel Trujillo

In May 2013, at UFC 160, Khabib defeated Abel Trujillo via unanimous decision.

Khabib weighed in at 158.5 lb, which was above the permitted weight limit. He was given two hours to cut his weight down to the lightweight limit of 156 pounds, but he chose to contribute a percentage of his fight money to Trujillo instead and the fight was held at a catchweight. Khabib set a new UFC record for the most knockdowns in a single bout during the course of the match, landing 21 successful takedowns out of a total of 28 attempts. 

Khabib vs. Pat Healy

At UFC 165, in September 2013, Khabib fought against Pat Healy and won via unanimous decision.

Dana White, the president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, lauded the relative newcomer during his first post-event news conference saying "Specifically, the Matt Hughes-style pick-up and drop-kick slam he executes on the opponent. Matt Hughes used to run a person from across Octagon and slam him, and that reminds me of the old Matt Hughes fights. The youngster is a lot of fun. The future seems bright for this boy, and we have high expectations for him."

Khabib vs Rafel dos

In April 2014, at UFC Fox 11, Khabib fought against Rafel dos Anjos, a former UFC Lightweight Champion. With all three judges scoring the bout 30-27, he won via unanimous decision.

Khabib Nurmagomedov Injuries 

In September 2014, at UFC 178, Khabib was set to face Donald Cerrone, but the bout was canceled due to Khabib suffering from a knee injury.

In May 2015, at UFC 187, Khabib was expected to fight Cerrone but pulled out due to another recurring knee injury.

In December 2015, at The Ultimate Fighter 22 Finale, Khabib was scheduled to fight Tony Ferguson but forfeit due to another injury.

In April 2016, the fight between Khabib and Ferguson was rescheduled, but due to Ferguson suffering lung issues, he was replaced, at a catchweight of 160 lb, with a newcomer Darrel Horcger. Khabib won the fight via TKO in round 2.

In September 2016, Khabib signed two contracts for a title shot against Eddie Alvarez, UFC Lightweight Champion at UFC 205.

In an announcement on September 26, the UFC revealed that Alvarez will be defending his championship against Connor McGregor instead.

Khabib vs Michael Johnson

In November 2016, at UFC 205, Khabib was scheduled to fight Michael Johnson. He  won the fight via submission and requested Dana White to give him a title shot as a result.

Khabib vs Edson Barboza

On December 30, 2017, at UFC 219, Nurmagomedov faced off against Edson Barboza. Khabib dominated the match  throughout the three rounds, repeatedly putting Barboza to the ground and dominating the bout with ground and pound. He was victorious in the bout by unanimous decision.

The victory also won him his 1st Performance of the Night bonus.

4. Khabib Nurmagomedov Top Fights

4.1. Khabib vs. Tony Ferguson

A title fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson was scheduled for UFC 223. Ferguson was forced to withdraw from the fight due to a knee injury, and the match was postponed for the fourth time in as many fights. Max Holloway was supposed to be the substitute, but he was struck out by the New York State Athletic Commission due to excessive weight loss. It was difficult for The Ultimate Fighting Championship to locate a suitable opponent because Anthony Pettis did not make weight and Pual Fedler did not have a high enough ranking to compete. Only Khabib was eligible to win the Lightweight title due to another weight issue which made the controversial inclusion of Al Laquinta an odd option. Khabib won by unanimous decision over Laquinta and was declared UFC Lightweight Champion.

4.2. Khabib vs. Connor McGregor

Khabib versus the infamous Connor McGregor at UFC 229. In addition to the snide remarks, Connor crossed several lines that enraged Khabib.

Conor personally attacked Khabib for his religion and nation in the press conference before the match. Conor also crashed Khabib’s team in the bus, smashed the windows and injured several team members.

During the match, Khabib was brutal to Connor in the first two Rounds, but in the third, Connor showed indications of a comeback. Eventually,  Khabib was forced to lose his first-ever round inside the cage as a result.

With a vicious neck crank in the fourth round, Khabib was able to take Connor down and force him into submission. Following the fight, additional controversy erupted when Khabib stormed the cage and hit Dillon Danis, sparking a brawl between the two camps that quickly spiraled out of control. Both combatants were subjected to lengthy suspensions and substantial fines.

4.3. Khabib vs. Justin Gaethje

In the UFC 249 main event, Nurmagomedov was slated to defend his title against Tony Ferguson on April 18, 2020. This was the seventh time that a fight between the two combatants had been scheduled, and both were on 12-bout winning streaks in the UFC at the time of the fight.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic-related restrictions on air travel, Khabib was unable to leave Russia and was therefore removed from the card. Ferguson would  instead compete for the interim UFC Lightweight Championship against top contender Justin Gaethje at UFC 249 which had been postponed until May 9.

With a fifth-round TKO, Gaethje ended Ferguson's winning streak and earned himself an opportunity to fight for the undisputed lightweight title against Khabib.

In the main event of UFC 254 on October 24, 2020, Khabib and Gaethje fought. Khabib won the fight by technical submission in the second round with a triangle choke to retain and re-unify the UFC Lightweight Championship.

5. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s UFC Lightweight Championship Retirement

Khabib announced his retirement from MMA in a post-fight interview with MMA Fighting.

He added that he had told his mother that he would continue to fight in the absence of his late father,

"I'm not coming here without my father, there's no way in hell. When UFC called me about Justin, it was the first time I had spoken to my mother since what had happened with my father. We talked for three days. She doesn’t want me to go into battle without my father, but I told her that this would be my final fight and that she would understand. If I make a promise, I have to follow through on it. It was my final combat in this building."

This victory earned him the prize for "Performance of the Night." Following the fight, Daniel Cormier said in an episode of DC and Helwani that Khabib had picked the triangle choke over an arm bar to avoid injuring Gaethje. Khabib denied this claim.

5.1. Official Retirement Announcement

On March 19th, 2021, the UFC President Dana White announced that Khabib Nurmagomedov’s decision to retire had been officially accepted.

5.2. UFC Hall of Fame 2022

Khabib Nurmagomedov will be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in July 2022, according to a statement released on March 5th, 2022 by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). The ceremony will take place during International Fight Week in Las Vegas.

5.3. Gorilla Fighting Championship(GFC)

Khabib purchased a Russian-based MMA promotion for $1 million, Gorilla Fighting Championship, and is going to rename it as Eagle Fighting Championship.

6. SAMBO: The Top Game - A Blueprint for “Smeshing”

The Sambo-Hybrid Fighting System by Khabib Nurmagomedov is a series where the legendary undefeated UFC Champion explains how he dominated the field in MMA with revolutionary ground skulls. This will teach you how to master the art of smeshing.

In this three part series, you will learn:

• Standing tactics
• Control and submissions on the ground
• Khabib’s revolutionary ground skills
• Closing the distance with strikes
• Setting up takedowns
• Shooting tips
• Single leg body locks and more

7. Championships and Accomplishments

7.1. Mixed Martial arts

Ultimate Fighting Champion

• Rank 1 Sportsman in Russia
• UFC Hall of Fame (Modern-Era Wing, Class of 2022)
• 1x UFC Lightweight Championship
• 3 successful Title defenses
• 1077 days longest Lightweight champion reign in UFC history
• 3x Performance of the Night
• Most takedowns in a single UFC fight (UFC 160: 21 takedowns on 28 attempts; 3 rounds) vs. Abel Trujillo
• Tied for Most title defenses in Lightweight division UFC history
• Tied for Most consecutive title defenses in Lightweight division UFC history
• Tied for Most title wins in Lightweight division UFC history
• Most submissions wins in Lightweight division title fights UFC history
• Most consecutive wins in Lightweight division UFC history
• Tied second-most submissions win in title fights UFC history
• Second Russian UFC champion
• First Muslim UFC champion
• 2020 UFC Honors Submission of the year

M-1 Global

• 2009 Selections

Atrium Cup

• Pankration Atrium Cup 2008
• International Pankration federation
• European Pankration Champion

World MMA Awards

• International fighter of the year 2016

ESPY Award

• Best MMA fighter 2021

7.2. Combat Sambo

• 2009 Russian Combat Sambo Gold Medalist(-74 Kg)
• 2009 World Combat Sambo Gold Medalist(-74 Kg)
• 2010 World Combat Sambo Championships Gold Medalist (−82 kg)

7.3. Grappling

• NAGA World Championship
• 2012 Men's No-Gi Expert Welterweight Champion 2012
• ADCC Rules No-Gi Expert Welterweight Champion

7.4. ARB (Army Hand-to-Hand Combat)

• European Champion
• Russian Union of Martial arts
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
• Mixed Martial Arts Most Valuable (2020)

BBC Sports Personality World Sport Star of the Year

• 2020 World Sport Star of the Year

Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM)

• Best Sportsman in Russia

Sherdog.com

• 2013 Breakthrough Fighter of the Year.
• 2016 Beatdown of the Year (UFC 205: vs. Michael Johnson).
• 2016 Comeback Fighter of the Year

Fightbooth.com

• 2013 Staredown of the Year (UFC 160: vs. Abel Trujillo)

MMAdna.nl

• 2017 Performance of the Year (UFC 219: vs. Edson Barboza)

MMAjunkie.com

• 2020 October Submission of the Month vs. Justin Gaethje

8. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Main Achievements

No Record

9. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Main Achievements(Belts)

No Record

10. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Professional Record Breakdown

11. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Fight History

12. Video Links