As the top promotions prepare to host their first tournaments in 2023, the MMA community is debating the future of one of the greatest fighters in the history of the sport.
The other day, information appeared in the media about the intention of Khabib Nurmagomedov to finally leave the industry.
Subsequently, the former UFC champion himself indirectly confirmed this by posting a repost of the news about his retirement from mixed martial arts on social networks.
And in the long term, this could have a huge impact not only on his Eagle FC promotion, but also on star teammates playing in the strongest leagues in the world.
Initially, Nurmagomedov himself hinted at a possible change in activity.
On January 5, he posted a post on social networks in which he assessed the performance of his teammates in 2022 and mentioned some kind of “decision”, but did not disclose its details.
However, even then one could get the impression that Khabib was saying goodbye to his wards, whose victories allowed him, along with Javier Mendez, to earn recognition as the best coaches of 2022 according to MMA Junkie.
“We finished the year.
The year, of course, turned out to be very eventful and successful.
Take care of yourself brothers.
I hope my decision will only benefit, I hugged you all tightly.
Thank you, you were a big reason for my success in sports, ”the Eagle’s message says.
As it turned out later, Nurmagomedov really published this post for a reason.
A couple of days later, information appeared that he decided to completely cut off contact with mixed martial arts.
And this applied not only to coaching, but also to "everything else related to MMA."
As a justification for this act, the athlete’s desire to “spend time with his family” was called.
And although at first many did not believe these rumors, they later received some confirmation.
And not only from Khabib, but also from Mendes.
In conversation with Yahoo!
Sports, he admitted that he learned about the plans of the former student three weeks ago.
And there was no reason to believe that Nurmagomedov's statements were unfounded.
At the end of 2020, many doubted that he would keep his word and end his career as a professional fighter.
Then he was at the peak, owned the UFC title and received huge fees, and in the future he could even become the highest paid representative of the industry.
However, Khabib kept his promise to his mother and did not return either for a possible rematch with Conor McGregor, or for the sake of the battle with Charles Oliveira, who at that time seriously encroached on his legacy.
On the contrary, he focused on working as a coach and helped two of his wards win belts in the largest MMA promotions at once.
So, Islam Makhachev repeated his achievement and took the UFC lightweight trophy, and his cousin Usman Nurmagomedov became the strongest in Bellator in this category.
However, this time the situation seemed much more confusing.
After all, Nurmagomedov is not only a coach and senior friend for many Russian fighters, but also the owner of the Eagle FC promotion, which recently planned expansion to the West.
A number of well-known foreign players signed contracts with the league, including Junior dos Santos, Diego Sanchez and Kevin Lee, and three tournaments were held in the United States.
And in many respects this was due precisely to the presence of Khabib in the leadership, whose name is able not only to attract famous athletes to cooperation, but also to open up all sorts of prospects that other organizations can only dream of.
In addition, thanks to his connections, many Eagle FC fighters got the opportunity to try their hand at American promotions.
Nurmagomedov did not hide that he would try to promote the brightest stars to the West, which he has been actively doing lately.
Largely thanks to him, Gadzhi Rabadanov has been fighting in Bellator for a long time, and Rizvan Kuniev signed an agreement with the PFL.
And it was difficult to imagine whether it would have been possible to move in this direction even after his departure.
Suddenly, the further fate of the strongest representatives of his team, the Eagles MMA, turned out to be a big question.
Until recently, Khabib not only took an active part in their preparation for future tournaments, but was also there during the fights themselves.
So, he was present in Makhachev's corner during his meeting with Oliveira, seconded Rabadanov in his fight at a tournament in Japan, and regularly accompanied his cousins.
Recently, he missed only one significant fight - for the Bellator title between Usman Nurmagomedov and Patricky Freire.
And although the Russian managed without him, at the end of the duel, the first thing he did was call the mentor via video link.
And while this may seem insignificant to some, often his being in the corner was the most important success factor.
Nurmagomedov has incredible experience and is able to not only support his charges, but also help them win battles.
Suffice it to recall how he explained in detail to Makhachev how he needed to apply a submission to Dan Hooker's arm.
It was after this that Islam finally managed to perform a kimura and extend the unbeaten streak to nine fights.
Nurmagomedov's tips would have been useful to Makhachev during the confrontation with Alexander Volkanovski.
But so far everything is going to the fact that Islam will hold the first defense of the belt without it.
According to Mendes, although Khabib participated in the preparation of Islam for UFC 284, his trip to Australia remains in doubt.
And this could have a detrimental effect on the performance of the newly minted champion, who faces one of the most difficult tests of his career.
True, later there was still hope that Nurmagomedov would be next to Makhachev at the moment when he would fight for the title of the strongest UFC fighter, regardless of weight categories.
As the head of Eagle FC Shamil Zavurov told Sport-Express, Khabib really intends to limit work with the team, but does not intend to completely leave it.
And there is no question of leaving the industry at all.
“He looked, weighed: a year he was only at home for two or three months.
The rest of the time he had trips, trips, competitions, preparations ... And he sat down, thought ... He says: “I won’t be able to travel with you, as I used to do.
Preparations, preparations ... "He explained to them so carefully that he has a family, that he needs to devote time to her," Zavurov explained.
According to him, Nurmagomedov simply does not have the opportunity to completely tie up with mixed martial arts.
Currently, his MMA school is functioning, and a base in the mountains will open in the near future.
And this is not counting the huge number of associates who continue active performances.
However, this is fundamentally different from the statements of Khabib's family friend Ramazan Rabadanov, according to whom he firmly decided to change his activity.
“I'm not at all surprised by this.
This is a natural transition of a person from one level to another.
He spoke with various businessmen.
Comparing his potential in this with people who make big money and things, he realized that he could survive on a new level for himself.
His level of business organization has risen.
Now he is fully in business.
Khabib will start his new business.
Which?
He himself will tell about everything, ”Rabadanov told the Championship.
Thus, it is too early to put an end to the situation with Nurmagomedov.
It remains only to wait for clarification from the Eagle himself and see how his status will change in the future - whether he will continue to work with a cohort of selected athletes or go headlong into business and focus on achieving other goals.
At the same time, it is extremely curious whether his position will change if his former colleagues do not perform as well as before.
After all, it is extremely difficult to imagine how Khabib will remain on the sidelines if Makhachev concedes to Volkanovski and leaves the trophy in the UFC.