Daniel Cormier knew before most of the world that fighters like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev were eventually going to take over MMA.
As a wrestler who frequented the international scene during his college and Olympic career, the future two-division UFC champion saw the kinds of athletes coming out of mountainous region of Dagestan.
The republic of Dagestan, which is less than West Virginia, produces many of the most talented wrestlers around the globe, including current Number. 1 pound-for-pound athlete Abdulrashid Sadulaev, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and four-time world champion.
Cormier expected Dagestan to start producing MMA world champions, as well.
His theory proved correct when Nurmagomedov was one of UFC’s most powerful fighters, making him one of the best of all time.
” It’s new for the world but not to us. The guys who have done international wrestling and guys that were around the world championships are familiar with it,” Cormier said to MMA Fighting about the Dagestani wrestlers’ talent. “When I got my third place medal at the worlds, Russia had maybe five world champs or six, and they had a third [place]. Most of those guys were from Dagestan.
” They know how to wrestle. The moment I first saw Khabib, then Islam, I realized that they were good at wrestling. This is exactly what happened .”
While Nurmagomedov eventually retired with a perfect 29-0 record, he’s since gone onto serve as coach to many fighters who came up under him, including Makhachev, who is now ranked as one of the best lightweights in the sport.
Lately, Makhachev has looked unstoppable in the UFC, amassing a 10-fight winning streak at 155 pounds with a 22-1 overall record. Many expect he will claim UFC gold sooner or later, and Cormier is among those who believe the 30-year-old lightweight already sits on top of the world.
“He is the greatest fighter in this weight class around the globe,” Cormier stated of Makhachev. “His abilities are just second to none.”
Makhachev, throughout his life, has not hidden his desire for wrestling to overwhelm and overpower his opponents, just like Nurmagomedov during his remarkable run in UFC.
Cormier said the fire that fuels Makhachev in the cage is no different than what he sees out of him in the gym at the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, Calif. That constant willingness to prove he’s the best is what Cormier knows will carry Makhachev to a UFC title in the near future.
“Let me tell you something, this Islam Makhachev is crazy,” Cormier said. I tell him [in the gym], “Hey, my man took you down during practice,” and he says, “Brother bring [Olympic gold medalist] Jordan Burroughs [to face me], this match will be great.” Islam is my favorite.
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