The Best Camp in MMA: Khabib Nurmagomedov's Coaching Legacy
Khabib Nurmagomedov never planned to coach, but losing his father changed his perspective. He is now the head coach of arguably the greatest team in the history of combat sports, but he won't stay for long. Here's why the best camp in MMA will need a new coach soon.
It's Jan. 1, and Khabib Nurmagomedov is spending the start of this new year the same way he has spent most of his life. He's covered in sweat, seated on a wrestling mat. Today, that mat is in the UFC Performance Institute, half a world away from his home and family in Dagestan. He has been here for three weeks now -- which for him is three weeks too long.
"I don't like this, to be honest," says Nurmagomedov, who prefers the simplicity and privacy of his home to the lights of Las Vegas. "Why anyone like this?"
It's the end of a two-hour practice, and the reason Nurmagomedov is here is surrounding him on the mat: a group of 20 fighters. Islam Makhachev, UFC champion. Umar Nurmagomedov, UFC title challenger. There are several fighters with undefeated MMA records in this room, along with a Muay Thai world champion and a silver medalist Olympic wrestler.
They make up, arguably, the greatest team in the history of combat sports, and right now, all of their attention is focused squarely on Nurmagomedov.
"It's not my job to say you are perfect," he says, after going through a list of improvements for them to make. "I'm here to make you better."
It's tradition with this team for the coach to address the athletes after each practice. For more than 30 years, that responsibility was held by Nurmagomedov's father, Abdulmanap. He was the team's founder and lifeblood. The one who first assembled the core of this group when they were children in Sildi, a small mountain village in Dagestan, and turned them into the MMA powerhouse they are today.
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