Daniel Cormier admits he was surprised by Khabib Nurmagomedov returning to face Justin Gaethje

Daniel Cormier admits he was surprised by Khabib Nurmagomedov returning to face Justin Gaethje on October 24 in the main event of UFC 254.

UFC Lightweight Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov recently lost his father to heart issues and complications stemming from Coronavirus after battling the virus for several weeks. Many believed that it would be a while before the UFC star would make a return to the octagon. Instead, however, he surprised everyone by declaring his intentions to beat Justin Gaethje at UFC 254.

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Close friend and fellow UFC star, Daniel Cormier, has expressed his surprise at the decision. The two train together and share a gym. The UFC Heavyweight knew how close Khabib was with his father and supported his friend during his loss.

Which is why the decision to come back as soon as October took him by surprise. Despite admitting to being taken aback by it at first, Cormier has since come around and is happy that the Lightweight Champion is back and defending his belt.

Daniel Cormier admits he was surprised by Khabib Nurmagomedov returning to face Justin Gaethje

“I was a little nervous initially,” said Daniel Cormier during an interview with MMA Junkie. “Not nervous I was a bit taken aback. After I did the show with ESPN talking about it, I heard that Khabib was looking more at getting sooner than later. So, when the announcement was made, it didn’t surprise me because I had an inclination it was going to happen. But I thought he would be away for a while. But nothing makes me happier than my champion coming back and defending his belt.”

In the same interview, Cormier added that he loved Khabib. The unbeaten star is one of the best people in the world according to Cormier. Even though Khabib has now become one of UFC’s biggest stars, Cormier revealed that he stills sees him as the little kid who first came into the gym and couldn’t speak English.

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