‘The Eagle’ has landed. Khabib Nurmagomedov is finally back in the United States as Islam Makhachev prepares to take on Dustin Poirier at UFC 302. Khabib, who had stopped being at the ringside to watch fights since his retirement has flown down to Newark to help Makhachev in training camp.
The fight against Dustin Poirier is arguably the biggest fight in Islam Makhachev’s career and who better to help him than Khabib Nurmagomedov?
The 35-year-old has beaten Poirier in the past and will have valuable insights. Whether it is to escape a guillotine or to take on in and tire Dustin out; that strategy will need to be thoroughly discussed, however. Regardless, Khabib shared a photo of his first training session on Instagram, saying,
“Just landed 14 days before the @islam_makhachev fight”
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Also part of the camp are the likes of Belal Muhammad, Frankie Edgar, and Ali Abdelaziz. The entire group is out in Newark preparing for the next fight. Islam, like Wong in Avengers: Endgame seems to have assembled every single person who could help him win the fight of his life.
Even Frankie Edgar’s kids are part of training camp.
It is now up to Islam Makhachev to emulate Khabib Nurmagomedov and secure a victory against Dustin Poirier, which, despite the help and support system he has, is a Herculean task in itself. So he needs to train like his life depends on it. In comes, Khabib.
‘The Eagle’ is not an easy coach. Fighters dread training under him because of how much he pushes them. In fact, Usman Nurmagomedov even asked for a rest day to prepare for his older brother.
Islam Makhachev reveals Usman Nurmagomedov dreads a training session with Khabib
Islam Makhachev knows how hard Khabib Nurmagomedov works. So when he comes in to help him for his next fight, with just 14 days to go, Nurmagomedov will push him to reach the next level. But it also pushes Umar Nurmagomedov up the walls.
In a recent interview with the Pound 4 Pound Podcast on YouTube, the champion revealed how all the fighters dread training under ‘The Eagle’, especially Usman,
“Usman tell today to the coach, ‘Coach, after camp, when is (does) Khabib come? Can I take rest today because I have to be ready.”
Islam Makhachev also put the rest of his camp on notice by saying that the last 10 days before the fight would be tough for everybody. Well, except Belal Muhammad. He could really benefit from Khabib Nurmagomedov’s training.
The Welterweight fighter recently secured a title shot against Leon Edwards and will be looking to win the belt from him. If he does, the AKA gym will have two active champions, a huge achievement for both Javier Mendez and Nurmagomedov.
