A little more than a month and a half remains before the fight between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Justin Gaethje at UFC 254, and the Russian fighter is already planning to move on to the next stage of preparation.

As it became known, in a week he will go to the United Arab Emirates, where he will study until the meeting with the American.

“On September 10, the team will fly to Dubai for training,” TASS quotes Russian manager Rizvan Magomedov.

Even at a press conference in Moscow, Nurmagomedov said that the main stage of the training camp will traditionally be held under the guidance of the head coach of the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) Javier Mendes.

He has mentored the athlete for the past eight years and helped him win the lightweight title.

In addition, it was he who was in the corner of the Russian during tournaments in the United States, which his father Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov could not attend.

The reason for this was the problem with the American visa.

Nurmagomedov himself said that Mendes would join him in September.

Subsequently, the information was confirmed by his manager.

According to Magomedov, the head coach of AKA will arrive in Dubai from the USA.

It is worth noting that Nurmagomedov did not waste time in vain and prepared intensively even in the absence of his coach.

All this time, he trained with members of his Eagles MMA team, and some of them will perform at the same UFC 254. It has already been officially announced that the champion's cousin Umar Nurmagomedov and his friend Islam Makhachev will hold their next fights on October 24.

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Publication from Khabib Nurmagomedov (@khabib_nurmagomedov) Aug 31, 2020 2:27 am PDT

For Umar, this fight will be his debut in the Absolute Fighting Championship.

He was originally supposed to fight at UFC Fight Island 3 in July, but the death of Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov forced him to abandon the fight with Nathaniel Wood.

His new opponent will be, known to Russian fans for his performances in M-1 Global.

In 2019, the Kazakhstani became the bantamweight champion, after which he spent one defense and earned a chance to try his hand at the largest MMA promotion on the planet.

At the same time, Makhachev faces a much more serious test, because Rafael Dos Anjos himself will become his opponent.

In March 2015, the Brazilian became the lightweight champion and stayed on the throne for 16 months, but after defeats to Eddie Alvarez and Tony Ferguson, he decided to move up the category.

There he was not so successful and won only four fights out of eight.

Thus, in October 2020, he will hold his first fight in the category up to 70 kilograms in four years.

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Publication from Khabib Nurmagomedov (@khabib_nurmagomedov) Sep 1, 2020 11:24 am PDT

At the moment, the rival of another cousin of the champion is unknown.

As Khabib said in August, Abubakar Nurmagomedov will also perform at UFC 254 and will try to take revenge for an offensive defeat from David Zavada at a tournament in Moscow.

Along the way, the reigning lightweight champion suggested thinking about how powerful a tournament that would lead his fight might look like.

“Khabib Nurmagomedov - Justin Gaethje, Tony Ferguson - Dustin Poirier, Zabit Magomedsharipov - Yair Rodriguez, Robert Whittaker - Jared Cannonier, Islam Makhachev - Rafael dos Anjos.

Two champions, four former champions, four title contenders.

How do you like this card with a bunch of "killers"?

Best card of the year, "the fighter wrote on Twitter.

Nurmagomedov himself not only hones his wrestling skills with teammates, but also pays great attention to general physical fitness.

On the fighter's Instagram page, a video appeared in which he was running.

The athlete assures that it is good not only for the body, but also for the spirit.

“Preparation continues, 54 days before the fight.

If you have nothing to do, take a jog into the mountains.

My answer is that it will help you to collect your thoughts and gain good energy, ”wrote Nurmagomedov.

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Publication by Abubakar Nurmagomedov (@abubakar_nurmagomedov) Aug 24, 2020 9:51 am PDT

While the Russian continues to train hard, his manager Ali Abdel-Aziz is promoting the fight.

The representative of the Eagle said that the battle between Nurmagomedov and Gatji is one of the most important not only in 2020, but also in history.

“As for me, this title fight is the greatest in the history of the lightweight division.

We saw what Gaethje did to Ferguson.

Everyone thought that Tony was the same fighter who would defeat Khabib.

But in fact, Justin destroyed it.

And Nurmagomedov will most likely do the same to him, ”Abdel-Aziz said.

It is noteworthy that Nurmagomedov himself expressed the opinion that his upcoming duel with Gaji would be one of the brightest in 2020.

In a conversation with ex-UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping, he stated that this "fight promises to be the best of the year" and assured that he "has something to show the world."

Abdel-Aziz also answered a question about a possible battle between Nurmagomedov and Georges Saint-Pierre.

The Russian has repeatedly admitted that a victory over the Canadian would be the perfect addition to his track record, and said that he was ready to fight him immediately after the third defense of the lightweight title.

At the same time, the manager said that he was not going to persuade the ex-champion in two weight categories to return to mixed martial arts.

“Georges is my friend and I am the last one to challenge him to battle.

But if he and Khabib want to fight and earn $ 20 million ... If that's what they want?

True, I think that Khabib will want to fight George not for the sake of money, but for the sake of the legacy - he honors the memory of his father, ”concluded Abdel-Aziz.

Meanwhile, Nurmagomedov posted a touching video in which he talked about how close he was with his dad and called on everyone to respect their parents.

“Appreciate your elders, they will not always be there, as we imagine it,” - wrote Khabib.

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Publication from Khabib Nurmagomedov (@khabib_nurmagomedov) 2 Sep 2020 at 1:29 PDT