Khabib Nurmagomedov shocked the MMA world when he suddenly announced his retirement following a huge title defence over Justin Gaethje back in October. Since then, many fans have wondered whether they’d ever see The Eagle in battle again, one in which Khabib would have to come out of retirement to conduct.
Tears were definitely shed as one of the sport’s all-time greatest fighters decided to hang up the gloves. While it’s certainly possible that we’ve seen the last of Khabib, his cousin – who could almost be a reincarnated version of Khabib’s career – is just getting started.
Umar Nurmagomedov has arrived.
Nine years to the day since Khabib entered the UFC, and promptly submitted Kamal Shalorus en route to an unblemished 29-0-0 record, Umar touched gloves for the first time. His opponent was Sergey Morozov of Kazakhstan, and the Russia needed just two rounds to finish him off.
After the fight, Khabib was given the microphone. He quickly mentioned the significance of the date, before essentially crediting his cousin with doing it even better than him.
If Umar’s career can come even close to Khabib’s, we’re in for something special.
(H/T UFC Canada, ESPN)
