Just like he always does, Khabib Nurmagomedov put on a commanding performance on Saturday night at UFC 254 against Justin Gaethje. “The Eagle” finished Gaethje via triangle choke in the second round en route to a third successful title defense.
With the death of his father in July, preparations for the said fight became grueling for Khabib. On top of that, he also suffered a broken foot three weeks ago, according to UFC president Dana White.
“What this guy’s been through, we’re all lucky that we got to see him fight tonight,” White said during the post-fight scrum. “And I’m hearing rumors of other things that I didn’t know about that you guys will hear about when he comes out later. Apparently, he was in the hospital. He broke his foot. Three weeks ago.
“He has two broken toes and a bone in his foot that’s broken, or something like that. That’s what his corner was telling me.”
Khabib got the job done in usual stellar fashion, and which left White utterly impressed.
“He is one of the toughest human beings on the planet and he’s the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world. And seriously, you have to start putting him up there at GOAT status with whoever else you think is the GOAT.”
On top of the injury, other health issues apparently plagued Khabib during camp. Coach Javier Mendez revealed that Khabib contracted the mumps:
Before he broke a toe in his foot, Khabib had mumps. Coach Javier Mendez just told me that was the worst camp they had and he was out two weeks cuz of the mumps. Got it in mid-September. #UFC254
— Kevin Iole (@KevinI) October 24, 2020
Right after the fight, Khabib decided to walk away from the sport with an impeccable record of 29-0 (19 wins by stoppage).
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