Despite the fact that before the fight between Islam Makhachev and Alex Volkanovski, Khabib Nurmagomedov predicted an early victory for the reigning UFC lightweight champion, he was not entirely sure that this confrontation would end well for his friend.
Makhachev’s coach Javier Mendez said this in an interview with the Jibber with Jaber podcast.
“Before the fight, Khabib called me and said, ‘Coach, I’m very worried about this fight, Volkanovski is really cool, and I’m worried about Islam,'” said the American specialist. “I replied that everything is fine, we will win this fight. I did not know how easy or difficult, but I was sure that we would win. I said, ‘I understand your concern, Khabib, but don’t worry’. And it actually turned out to be a super-difficult fight.”
On February 11 at UFC 284 in Perth, Islam Makhachev successfully defended the UFC lightweight championship belt, defeating Alex Volkanovski via unanimous decision 49-46 and 48-47 twice in five rounds.
Source: https://fighttime.ru/news/item/31336-khabib-somnevalsya-v-pobede-makhacheva-nad-volkanovski.html?rand=19907
