#askarov

#askarov

Makhachev's cryptic response to a photo of Morales and Topuria, featuring a telephone emoji, hints at a potential matchup with one of them next.

I think if Ilia does this, he will lose everything. But he has the power to fight at lightweight, and I don't think it's going to be a good fight for Gaethje if they fight. Gaethje's fight [against Pimblett] was so good, but he missed a lot of punches. That's not a good idea with Ilia. If [Ilia] touches [Justin], he'll knock him out, but with Islam, it's not going to happen. Islam is so huge and on another level.

"I do hate him," Morales told Alvaro Colemenoro. "We don't have a very good vibe. But at the end of the day, he's still a fighter. I'm not gonna get overconfident if I had to prepare myself to fight him... That fight is gonna be intense if it happens... I think that if I were to fight him, it would be the first time that I would fight in a very aggressive way."

Cormier immediately called out both of them for not following any rules. Cormier noted that their famous games of Dagestani basketball is a mixture of rugby and basketball with almost no rules. Cormier would preferably not include them on any team as they would try to modify the rules according to their convenience. However, if bound to choose, Cormier would pick Nurmagomedov, whom he sees as the bigger and rougher one.

It's no secret that there is a decline, unfortunately, even though the top guys will remain the top guys. It's not as colorful as it once used to be. There used to be 15 to 20 top-name heavyweights, which is now not the case. They've kind of slowly declined, unfortunately.

"I wasn't surprised by Petr's victory," Nurmagomedov told Red Corner MMA. "I knew he is better at striking; he's got good defensive wrestling. Even if Petr had been taken down, Merab doesn't have the grappling skills like Aljamain Sterling has to control Petr on the ground... I think even if you give Merab a three-year break and make him face a healthy version of Petr Yan, Petr will beat him 10 out of 10 times."

Kamaru Usman has never shared the mat with Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev despite being close friends with them. Usman is currently rallying for a welterweight title fight against Makhachev. Many believe the matchup is being plotted by their common manager, Ali Abdelaziz. Courtesy of Abdelaziz, Usman is a close friend of Makhachev and his mentor, Nurmagomedov. However, "The Nigerian Nightmare" surprisingly revealed that he never had the opportunity of training with either Makhachev or Nurmagomedov.

"He used to be a humble kid, now he's not," Makhachev told Red Corner MMA. "He himself was shocked by the way they recognized him in the U.S. Journalists were waiting in the lobby to get an interview. He went a bit too far, and Khabib slowed him down. He said, 'Chanco, don't chase the hype; the hype has to chase you.' So we slowed him down on time."

"The GOAT for me is Khabib, and I would put Jon Jones in that category, but I can't," Mendez said on the Ahmed Mahmood show. "If you're caught doing something you shouldn't have been doing, how can you be considered at the top of the league? This is a true sport, and in a true sport you cannot put that person ahead.

There's no special work for this particular opponent. We're trying to improve in all aspects to become the best in the world. I can't see any threat in Figueiredo. Of course, he's a very experienced and skillful fighter. But it's all about his right hand and the right leg. He has some understanding of grappling. He is capable of taking you down. Overall, he's a decent fighter, but I can't see any big threat in him.

This everything is from my uncle Abdulmanap. My father pushed us into sports, but he didn't have any plans that we'd be champions. But my uncle Abdulmanap, he believed in us. He always came to my father and told him, 'Hey, I see your boys have big potential. Be careful with them.' Today, uncle Abdulmanap is not with us, but his son keeps doing his job with us.

Last Thursday, Ed Soares, manager of UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, made it clear in an exclusive interview with Sherdog.com that his athlete's next move has not yet been decided. He then analyzed all the possibilities, whether at light heavywweight - Khamzat Chimaev or Carlos Ulberg - or in a possible move to heavyweight against the likes of Jon Jones or Ciryl Gane.