Coach Javier Mendez believes Umar, and Khabib Nurmagomedov are very similar. Even the path their careers have taken are very similar paths according to the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) head coach. So if ‘Young Eagle’ takes on Sean O’Malley next, it will almost be a rehash of the Conor McGregor vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov fight feud that had changed the career trajectory of both fighters.
O’Malley currently has only one fight on his mind, and that is Merab Dvalishvili. But even if he manages to safely navigates the beast of a Georgian, he will have to prepare himself for the royal bloodlines of the Nurmagomedov clan.
Following his win over Cory Sandhagen, Umar Nurmagomedov now sits in wait for the winner of O’Malley vs Dvalishvili for the bantamweight title.
In a recent interview with Submission Radio, AKA head coach, Mendez, who has also trained Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhchev to title reigns, spoke about the similarities between Umar and the undefeated Dagestani.
“I see it as a little Connoresque, little Khabib, not quite but sort of…If it happens that way, it will be a lot of attention…because of the parallels between them two.”
Mendez went on to talk about how Umar and Khabib have had a very similar career in the UFC so far, from their win streak, to when they got their recognition for the title.
Team AKA are now targeting a title shot in February, when the UFC returns to Abu Dhabi.
Meanwhile, ahead of this fight, yet another prominent name in the sport had high praise for ‘Young Eagle’.
Daniel Cormier gives Umar his flowers after Sandhagen fight
DC knows the team AKA fighters better than anyone else. He has trained alongside them and sparred with them for years. It was he who had welcomed Khabib when the young Dagestani had first fought in the USA.
He has since trained with Makhchev, Umar and Usman Nurmagomedov amongst others and seen them succeed. In a recent episode of the Good Guy/ Bad Guy show, the former UFC double champ even called Umar the best bantamweight in the world.
“It’s hard not to think that when you watch Umar Nurmagomedov, you aren’t watching the best bantamweight in the world.”
“It’s hard not to think that when you watch Umar Nurmagomedov, you aren’t watching the best bantamweight in the world.” @dc_mma has high praise for Umar after his win against Cory Sandhagen. pic.twitter.com/ue2a3kDtrF
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 6, 2024
Cormier also spoke about how many fighters in the division, especially the ranked ones were scared to take the Umar fight. Sandhagen was the one who took the risk and ended up losing his #1 title contendership as a result.
‘DC’ believes the hype behind ‘Young Eagle’ is real and his results speak for themself.
