Usman Nurmagomedov is extremely grateful for the mentorship he has received from his cousin Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Usman will seek to defend his lightweight title against Alexandre Chabri in the main event of the Bellator Champions Series at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California on September 7. Khabib took some time away from mixed martial arts last year, but “The Eagle” has been active in recent times supporting his teammates and relatives from Dagestan, including Umar Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev.
Khabib will also be working with the unbeaten Bellator lightweight champion in his next title defense, serving as his cornerback. Usman said having Khabib there makes the training environment completely different. Usman said Khabib’s knowledge of the sport is second to none and having the UFC Hall of Famer by his side is a godsend.
“For us, this is a gift from God,” Usman said during a recent Bellator media call. “Someone like Khabib, this guy, it’s like you just can’t find that around. It’s so hard to find someone like Khabib. He supports us so much, helps us so much, and he knows everything about MMA like nobody knows. And when he’s in camp, it’s like everything is different, it feels different. I like learning so much and I grow so much myself. It’s like a thank you to God that we have Khabib.”
Chabri is currently unbeaten in five Bellator fights and hasn’t lost since 2016. But “Peresvet” is just another name added to Nurmagomedov’s resume.
“No, this is the same thing as before,” Usman said. “It’s not like anything’s different. It’s the same guy that I lost to before. Nothing, nothing. Just [another] Just the name.”
Nurmagomedov also believes Chabry’s main weakness is mental and expects him to give up once the fight gets deep.
“I think his weakness is mentality,” Usman said. “I think when the time comes, when the cage closes, after two or three rounds he’ll get tired and he’ll give up, but you never know.”
