After two years away from coaching, UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov will be back in the corner this Saturday night.
The former lightweight champion has been steering clear of the sport since the beginning of last year, but helps out with close teammates such as his cousin Usman Nurmagomedov. And he will finally be back in the octagon as a cornerman at UFC 302 as Islam Makhachev defends his lightweight belt.
Makhachev will face his pal’s old rival Dustin Poirier in a potentially historic third defence of his title. Should he win, he will join Nurmagomedov alongside Benson Henderson, BJ Penn and Frankie Edgar in the record books as holding the most title defences.
Islam Makhachev confirms Khabib Nurmagomedov will be back in his corner at UFC 302
While Nurmagomedov has been in New Jersey for the entirety of Makhachev’s training camp, fans were unsure if he would fill a spot in the corner on fight night. Last year he announced that he would be leaving the sport entirely in order to spend more time with his famiy.
And while he stayed training he was notable in his absence from the two fights between Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski last year. However, in a video today, his teammate confirmed that he will be back in the corner for this fight.
“Eagle has landed in Jersey City,” Makhachev told UFC cameras during the ceremonial poster signing session. “He’s going to be in my corner. Honestly, I’m very happy because he’s one of the best corner coaches, brother, friend. That’s it.”
Khabib Nurmagomedov believes Islam Makhachev will break lightweight title record
As of right now, Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the four men to have defended the lightweight title since its inception in the early 2000s. And he likely would have broken that record if he hadn’t retired at the peak of his powers in 2020.
While that list will add a fifth if Makhachev beats Poirier this weekend, the former champion is confident his pal will go a step beyond and break it himself. He told UFC Embedded cameras: “Islam is feeling very good, honestly very sharp.
“This is a very important fight for him. This is his third title defence, very, very close to breaking the record for all-time lightweight defence. He’s very close.”
Islam Makhachev pays tribute to Khabib Nurmagomedov’s father ahead of UFC 302
Both Makhachev and Nurmagomedov attribute much of their success to the former champion’s late father Abdulmanap. While Khabib undeniably played a huge role in his friend’s rise to the top, they both regularly pay tribute to the former coach, who passed away due to heart issues in 2020.
The 32-year-old has recently even claimed that without the wisdom of his teammate’s dad, he wouldn’t have become the man he is today. He even gave his belt to Khabib in the cage after he first won it against Charles Oliveira, dedicating the win to his late father.
Speaking during the UFC 302 Countdown Show, Makhachev said: “I gave the belt to Khabib [Nurmagomedov] because I know who made me. Him and his father [Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov].”