Whether it be a team of actual blood relatives, like the legendary Gracie family of Brazil, or many of the notable super gyms that have produced countless world champions, there has been a long, recorded history of iron sharpening iron in mixed martial arts.
Throughout UFC history, there has long been a debate as to which team is the deepest and most accomplished, whether it be Team Alpha Male, Jackson-Wink MMA, American Top Team, City Kickboxing, Miletich Fighting Systems or Chute Boxe Academy, just to name a few.
But in recent years, an accomplished group of MMA champions and elite rising stars, many of whom now train in the U.S. at the perennially dominant American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, California, has emerged from the Dagestan region of Russia under the tutelage of Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, the former Eagles MMA head coach.
Nurmagomedov, who died from COVID-19 complications at the age of 57 in 2020, helped groom his son, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and teammate, Islam Makhachev, to UFC lightweight title reigns and recognition as the pound-for-pound best fighters in the sport. The elder Nurmagomedov, alongside AKA head coach Javier Mendez, is also responsible for training a pair of his elite nephews, Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov, and older brother Umar Nurmagomedov, who will compete for the bantamweight title on Jan. 16 at UFC 311.
Although Khabib abruptly retired in 2020 to fill the coaching shoes of his late father, the current combined records of Makhachev and the three Nurmagomedovs (Khabib and first cousins Usman and Umar) is a staggering 91-1 (1 NC), which is a testament to Abdulmanap’s incredible legacy as a coach.
Given the incredible success of the four Dagestan-born fighters across elite MMA, a new debate has emerged between fans surrounding which one is the most well-rounded and talented, along with which fighter has the potential, when all have stepped away from the sport for good, to be rated the highest from a historical perspective.
Usman, who returns on Jan. 25 to defend his Bellator 155-pound title against Irish sensation Paul Hughes on the kickoff of PFL’s Road to Dubai Champions Series, might be the youngest and among the least accomplished of the four Dagestan-born fighters, but that hasn’t stopped him from receiving praise.
Last November, Mendez called Usman”the most talented fighter I’ve ever trained,” which is incredibly high praise when you consider Mendez has also trained a litany of legends from outside the extended Nurmagomedov family, too, including Daniel Cormier, Luke Rockhold, Cain Velasquez, Frank Shamrock and BJ Penn. Khabib Nurmagomedov also went public last week saying he believes his cousin Usman could end up retiring as one of the top five best fighters in MMA history.
When asked about these remarks on Wednesday in an interview with CBS Sports, Usman remained humble. But when asked about which of the star fighters trained by his uncle Adbulmanap is the most talented and who will one day be remembered as the greatest, the 26-year-old PFL star gave a surprising answer.
“My opinion, as to who is the best fighter of all-time, it is Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov,” Usman said. “He made us. He was not only a coach, he was a competitor, too, in judo, wrestling, everything. He made the whole team. He made us.
“I don’t have any competition with my brothers. This is [other] people’s deal. But, for me, one of the best, it’s my uncle, it’s my older brother Umar, it’s Islam, it’s Khabib. All of these guys, they are better than me. It doesn’t matter what the people say. For me, I know what I said and these guys are better than me. For sure.”
Whether or not Usman eventually joins his teammates and family in stepping foot inside the Octagon remains to be seen, although he told Gorilla Fighting last October that his plan is to wait for Makhachev to finish his UFC title reign over the next two years before one day looking to secure the same UFC lightweight crown.
Until then, Usman said he will continue to focus on the lofty goals that continue to drive him.
“My goal in my career is to be one of the best fighters of all-time. It is really my goal,” Usman said. “When someone will talk about MMA fighters, they will remind my name. This is for me. Then, I will feel OK and I can retire. For now, I am only 26 years and, for April, I will turn 27. I think I have much time to do this.”
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