Dominance MMA has been in the corner of some of the most successful fighters in UFC history.
As the long-time manager of Khabib Nurmagomedov, Ali Abdelaziz has experienced the highest highs in the sport of MMA.
Abdelaziz has helped put together some huge fights but of course, being closely connected to high-level fighters also brings about some difficult moments.
Having worked alongside the likes of Islam Makhachev and Justin Gaethje, whose future in the UFC is currently up in the air, there are a lot of highlights that one of the most prominent managers can look back on.
However, for him, one of his fighters’ accomplishments that he’s most proud of is about the setbacks that led to a remarkable comeback.
Ali Abdelaziz explains why Kamaru Usman’s win over Joaquin Buckley is one of the wins he’s most proud of
Kamaru Usman is an excellent example of the highs and lows of mixed martial arts at the elite level.
After his dominant welterweight title reign was ended by a stunning final round knockout from Leon Edwards, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ went on to suffer three defeats in a row.
Usman fought through injuries during the best years of his career but they eventually caught up with him, leading him to being inactive for over a year and a half.
The 38-year-old returned last month where despite coming in as the underdog, he ended the winning streak of surging contender Joaquin Buckley with a dominant performance over five rounds.
In a recent appearance on the Pound 4 Podcast, Ali Abdelaziz told Usman why the lows that his fighter went through before bouncing back make it one of the wins he’s proudest of, alongside Khabib Nurmagomedov’s victory over Conor McGregor in the biggest UFC fight of all time.
“It really hurt me. Yeah, that really took something from me. The two wins I’m so proud of, when Khabib beat Conor and when you beat Buckley, not when you won the title.
“It was because I know what this dude went through. Hip surgeries and knee surgeries and everybody write him off. He tried to come back. He tried to work but he can’t work and that really… The Leon fight, it really took a piece out of me.”
Ali Abdelaziz admits that he didn’t want Kamaru Usman to fight Joaquin Buckley on his return
Earlier on in the podcast, Ali Abdelaziz spoke about Kamaru Usman’s return in Atlanta and the choice of Joaquin Buckley as an opponent.
During his time away from the Octagon, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ was linked to many of the division’s top names as a former champion.
Buckley had only recently emerged as a dangerous contender but his explosive power made him a dangerous test for the veteran.
Abdelaziz admitted during the interview that there were several other candidates that he wanted his fighter to compete against over ‘New Mansa’.
“Honestly, I wanted the Ian [Machado] Garry fight, like me personally, or [the] Shavkat [Rakhmonov] fight because Buckley scared me. He really did. He’s very dangerous and he’s not been taken down more than one time in any fight and he got right back up.”