Usman Nurmagomedov wants to honor his late uncle Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov’s legacy by winning the title at Bellator 288
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Usman Nurmagomedov looks to honor his late uncle, Abdulmanap, with a win at Bellator 288
Usman Nurmagomedov certainly owes a large part of his unique and impeccable skillset to his uncle, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov’s training. And now, as we see Coach Khabib take over, Usman is out to make history under his guidance. At Bellator 288, Usman Nurmagomedov takes on Patricky “Pitbull” Freire for the Bellator Lightweight Championship. Usman is currently undefeated in MMA holding a 15-0 record, clearly living up to his last name.
Nurmagomedov discussed his upcoming fight and what his uncle’s guidance and mentorship meant to him with MMAFighting. “For me [this fight], it’s all the hopes and dreams my uncle has put into me…I just don’t want to let him down. I want to take this belt, inshallah, and it put in our school of Abdulmanap,” said Usman.
Usman also talked about how good Khabib is as a coach and compared The Eagle to his father. Nurmagomedov said, “There’s some little things that are missing from his dad but he pushes us very hard for training. He mentally helps us. He energizes us. But I think that Khabib is a copy of his father as a coach.” And it is clear from his words that he greatly respects Khabib as a coach and fighter.
If Usman Nurmagomedov wins on Friday, he will be yet another champion to emerge from Abdulmanap’s school of world beaters. And he will also have become champion only 5 fights into his Bellator career. Despite some saying the title fight is premature for Usman, if he does manage to win, he will have made history. At only 24 years of age, he will become the youngest Bellator champion ever.
Patricky Pitbull feels Usman Nurmagomedov does not deserve a title shot
Usman Nurmagomedov will be Patricky Pitbull’s first defense of the Bellator Lightweight Championship. He won the title off of Peter Queally at Bellator 270. Freire has fought some of the best lightweights to grace the sport like Eddie Alvarez and Michael Chandler. The lightweight champion, however, believes that Usman is not deserving of a title shot. He feels like the Dagestani fighter owes this opportunity to his famous last name.
And a case can certainly be made for this claim. Nurmagomedov has only 4 fights in the promotion, with his most noteworthy fight being a win against Team Alpha Male’s Chris Gonzalez at Bellator 288. However, similar claims were made about Usman’s training partner, Islam Makhachev. And at UFC 280, the world saw exactly what he was capable of.
Also Read: Khamzat Chimaev FACEPALMS at Alex Pereira receiving a BJJ brown belt after UFC 281 win
With Nurmagomedov having essentially the same training and pedigree, he will surely be looking to prove everyone wrong, just like Makhachev did in October. Nurmagomedov has a chance to make history and become the youngest Bellator champion ever. However, a veteran of the sport stands in his way in the form of Patricky Pitbull.
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